Display for high capacity baler

ABSTRACT

A baling system comprising a high capacity baler, and an electronic display configured to display baling information to an operator of the baling high capacity baler. The baler additionally comprises a first bale-forming area in which a first series of first individual bales can be formed, and a second bale-forming area in which a second series of second individual bales can be formed. The baler further comprises one or more first sensors configured to sense one or more parameters related to at least one of the first bales, and one or more second sensors configured to sense one or more parameters related to at least one of the second bales. The electronic display is configured to simultaneously display data generated from at least one of the first sensors and at least one of the second sensors.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present non-provisional patent application claims priority to U.S.Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/801,982, filed on Feb. 6,2019, and entitled “HIGH CAPACITY SQUARE BALER,” and to U.S. ProvisionalPatent Application Ser. No. 62/790,249, filed on Jan. 9, 2019, andentitled “HIGH CAPACITY SQUARE BALER,” with the entireties of bothabove-identified, previously-filed provisional applications being herebyincorporated by reference into the present non-provisional patentapplication.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

Embodiments of the present invention are generally directed to highcapacity balers. More particularly, embodiments of the present inventionare directed to an electronic display for a baler configured to presentone or more parameters related to a plurality of bales being formed bythe baler.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Balers are agricultural implements that form bales (e.g., square orround-shaped bales) of crop material. Most currently available squarebalers use a single baling chamber with a single gearbox, a singleplunger, and a single knotter assembly to produce one square bale at atime. To increase baling efficiency, there is a desire to increase thecapacity of some balers to produce more bales per hour. One way toincrease baler capacity is to run the baler's plunger faster; however,due to concerns with knotter assembly reliability at high speeds,plunger speeds have maxed out at approximately one hundred revolutionsper minute. Another option to increase baler capacity is to use thickerflakes when forming the bales; however, end users of bales often objectto bale flakes being too large. Also, larger flakes can lead toinconsistent bale lengths.

These limitations have led to special hitches that pull two balers withone tow vehicle. While this solution can increase bale production, theuse of two balers negatively impacts maneuverability of the tow vehicleand/or of the balers during both field operation and transport.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

One embodiment of the present invention includes a baling systemcomprising a high capacity baler, and an electronic display configuredto display baling information to an operator of the baling high capacitybaler. The baler additionally comprises a first bale-forming area inwhich a first series of first individual bales can be formed, and asecond bale-forming area in which a second series of second individualbales can be formed. The baler further comprises one or more firstsensors configured to sense one or more parameters related to at leastone of the first bales, and one or more second sensors configured tosense one or more parameters related to at least one of the secondbales. The electronic display is configured to simultaneously displaydata generated from at least one of the first sensors and at least oneof the second sensors.

In another embodiment of the present invention, there is provided amethod of forming a plurality of bales of crop material with a highcapacity square baler. The method comprises one step of the steps offorming a first series of first bales in a first bale-forming area. Themethod includes an additional step of forming a second series of secondbales in a second bale-forming area. The method includes an additionalstep of obtaining, via one or more sensors, data related to the firstand the second bales being formed within the first and the secondbale-forming areas, respectively. The method includes a further step ofpresenting, via an electronic display, one or more parameters based onthe data obtained via the one or more sensors.

This summary is provided to introduce a selection of concepts in asimplified form that are further described below in the detaileddescription. This summary is not intended to identify key features oressential features of the claimed subject matter, nor is it intended tobe used to limit the scope of the claimed subject matter. Other aspectsand advantages of the present invention will be apparent from thefollowing detailed description of the embodiments and the accompanyingdrawing figures.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

Embodiments of the present invention are described herein with referenceto the following drawing figures, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a front, left-side perspective view of a baler according toembodiments of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a rear, right-side perspective view of the baler from FIG. 1 ;

FIG. 3 is a top plan view of the baler from FIGS. 1 and 2 , with aportion in front of the baler, including a chassis, removed;

FIG. 4 is a cross-section of the baler from FIGS.1-3, taken along theline 4-4 from FIG. 3 , and provided with arrows to illustrate cropmaterial flow through the baler;

FIG. 5 is a front perspective view of the baler from FIGS. 1-4 ,provided with arrows to illustrate crop material flow through the baler,and with a portion of the baler removed to illustrate stuffer chutes,stuffer assemblies, and baling chambers of the baler;

FIG. 6 is a front perspective view of a rotor housing and a pickupassembly from the baler from FIGS. 1-5 , with a rotor being positionedwithin the rotor housing;

FIG. 7 is a front, left-side perspective view of the baler of FIGS. 1-6, with portions of the baler removed and shown in dashed line, so as toillustrate crop material flowing from a left-side stuffer chute into aleft-side baling chamber;

FIG. 8 is a front, right-side perspective view of the baler of FIGS. 1-6, with portions of the baler removed and shown in dashed line, so as toillustrate crop material flowing from a right-side stuffer chute into aright-side baling chamber;

FIG. 9 is a front, left-side view of a gearbox and plungers positionedwith the baling chambers of the baler from FIGS. 1-8 , with portions ofthe baler removed or shown in dashed line for clarity;

FIG. 10 is a front, right-side view of the gearbox and plungerspositioned with the baling chambers of the baler from FIG. 9 ;

FIG. 11 is a front left-side view of knotter assemblies and stufferassemblies from the baler of FIGS. 1-8 being rotationally linked viachains and sprockets;

FIG. 12 is a left-side elevation view of a portion of the baler fromFIGS. 1-8 , particularly showing a bale of crop material being formed ina left-side baling chamber and a needle of a knotter assembly in alowered position;

FIG. 13 is a left-side elevation view of the portion of the baler fromFIG. 12 , particularly showing the needle in a raised position;

FIG. 14 is a rear perspective view of a portion of a baler comprising asingulator according to embodiments of the present invention, with thesingulator attached rearward of baling chambers of the baler;

FIG. 15 is a bottom perspective view a portion of the baler and of thesingulator from FIG. 14 ;

FIG. 16 is a side elevation view of a portion of the baler and of thesingulator FIGS. 14 and 15 ;

FIG. 17 is another rear perspective view of the singulator from FIGS.14-16 ;

FIG. 18 a top plan view a portion of the baler and of the singulatorfrom FIGS. 14-16 , particularly illustrating how a first individual baleand a second individual bale flow though the singulator from the balingchambers into a single row of bales;

FIG. 19 is a rear perspective view of a portion of a baler comprising asingulator according to other embodiments of the present invention, withthe singulator attached rearward of baling chambers of the baler;

FIG. 20 is a bottom perspective view a portion of the baler and of thesingulator from FIG. 19 ;

FIG. 21 is a side elevation view of a portion of the baler and of thesingulator FIGS. 19 and 20 , with a portion of a chassis extension cutaway to illustrate a conveyor;

FIG. 22 is another rear, right side perspective view of a portion of thebaler and of the singulator from FIGS. 19-21 ;

FIG. 23 is a rear, right side perspective view of the portion of thebaler and of the singulator from FIG. 22 , particularly illustrating aleft side dump cradle in a bale dumping position;

FIG. 24 is a rear, right side perspective view of the portion of thebaler and of the singulator from FIG. 22 , particularly illustrating aright side dump cradle in a bale dumping position;

FIG. 25 is another rear perspective view of a portion of the baler andof the singulator from FIGS. 19-21 , particularly illustrating a landingsection which includes left side and right side dump cradles, andfurther illustrating portions of an exit section positioned below thelanding section;

FIG. 26 is a top plan view of a portion of the baler and of thesingulator from FIGS. 19-21 ;

FIG. 27 is a perspective view of the singulator taken along the line27-27 from FIG. 26 ;

FIG. 28 is another rear perspective view of a portion of the baler andof the singulator from FIGS. 19-21 , particularly illustrating left andright dump cradles in a bale receiving position and with a bale of cropmaterial being supported by the right side dump cradle;

FIG. 29 is a rear perspective view of the portion of the baler and ofthe singulator from FIG. 28 , particularly illustrating the right dumpcradle in a bale dumping position such that a bale of crop material isdropped down onto a receiving tray of an exit section of the singulator;

FIG. 30 is another perspective cross section view of the singulator fromFIG. 27 , particularly illustrating a bale supported on a receiving trayof an exit section of the singulator;

FIG. 31 is a perspective cross section view of the singulator from FIG.30 , particularly illustrating a conveyor pushing the bale rearwardalong the receiving tray;

FIG. 32 is a top plan view of a portion of the baler and of thesingulator from FIGS. 19-21 , particularly illustrating a bale flowingfrom the baling chambers and through the singulator to form a single rowof bales;

FIG. 33 is a rear perspective view of a portion of a baler comprising asingulator according to yet other embodiments of the present invention,with the singulator attached rearward of baling chambers of the baler;

FIG. 34 is another rear perspective view of a portion of a baler and thesingulator from FIG. 33 , particularly illustrating a left side liftcradle in a bale ejecting position;

FIG. 35 is another rear perspective view of a portion of a baler and thesingulator from FIG. 33 , particularly illustrating a right side liftcradle in a bale ejecting position;

FIG. 36 is a schematic diagram of a control system for a high capacitybaler;

FIG. 37 is a graphical user interface displayable on an electronicdisplay of the control system from FIG. 36 .

The drawing figures do not limit the present invention to the specificembodiments disclosed and described herein. The drawings are notnecessarily to scale, emphasis instead being placed upon clearlyillustrating the principles of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The following detailed description of the present invention referencesvarious embodiments. The embodiments are intended to describe aspects ofthe invention in sufficient detail to enable those skilled in the art topractice the invention. Other embodiments can be utilized and changescan be made without departing from the scope of the present invention.The following detailed description is, therefore, not to be taken in alimiting sense. The scope of the present invention is defined only bythe appended claims, along with the full scope of equivalents to whichsuch claims are entitled.

Broadly, embodiments of the present invention are directed toagricultural implements in the form of crop balers, such as baler 10illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2 , which are configured to simultaneouslyform two or more bales of crop material from a single windrow of thecrop material. In some embodiments, the baler 10 will be configured toform square bales of crop material, such that the baler 10 is a squarebaler.

The baler 10 may include a wheeled chassis 12 including an axle 14 and apair of laterally spaced wheels 16 that support the chassis 12 above theground. The baler 10 may additionally comprise a plurality of balingchambers 18, extending generally in a fore-and-aft direction and whichare supported on top of the chassis 12. As will be described in moredetail below, the baling chambers 18 are configured as bale formingchambers or areas in which small, square bales of crop material can beformed. Because the baler 10 includes a plurality of baling chambers 18,the baler 10 may be referred to as a “high capacity” baler capable ofsimultaneously forming multiple bales of crop material. In some specificembodiments, the baler 10 will include two baling chambers 18 supportedon the chassis 12 and positioned between the wheels 16. As will bedescribed in more detail below, the plurality of baling chambers 18permits the baler 10 to simultaneously form a plurality of bales of cropmaterial. In some embodiments, the plurality of bales of crop materialmay be formed by the baler 10 picking up crop material from a singlewindrow of crop material.

In some embodiments, the baler 10 may be pulled or pushed by a towingvehicle (e.g., a tractor, which is not shown in the drawings). Inalternative embodiments, the baler 10 may be self-propelled. Forexample, the baler 10 may include an internal combustion engine and anyother components necessary for the baler 10 to operate independently ofany other machine or towing vehicle. Returning to embodiments in whichthe baler 10 is pulled by a towing vehicle, the chassis 12 of the baler10 may include a forwardly-extending tongue 20, as illustrated in FIGS.1 and 2 , for connecting the baler 10 to the towing vehicle. A forwardend of the tongue 20 may include a hitch for facilitating the connectionwith the towing vehicle, while a rearward end of the tongue 20 may bepivotally connected to the chassis 12. It will be appreciated that, asused herein, the terms “front” or “forward” refers to a directiontowards a free end of the tongue 20 of the baler 10, while the terms“back,” “rear,” or “rearward” refer to an opposite direction (i.e., awayfrom the free end of the tongue 20 of the baler 10). Correspondingly,the terms “left,” “left-side,” “right,” and “right-side” shouldgenerally be interpreted as corresponding to the appropriate directionswhen viewing the front of the baler 10 while positioned at the back ofthe baler 10. As such, for example, the left-side of the baler 10 isshown in the foreground of FIG. 1 , while the right-side of the baler isshown in the foreground of FIG. 2 . The tongue 20 is generallyconfigured to connect the baler 10 with the towing vehicle in a mannerthat allows the baler 10 to be positioned directly behind the towingvehicle. As such, the baler 10 can pick up crop material from a singlewindrow that is passed over first by the towing vehicle and then by thebaler 10. As such, the baler 10 may, in some embodiments, be configuredas an “in-line” baler, as will be discussed in more detail below.

To collect crop material laying on the ground in a windrow, the baler 10may include a pickup mechanism 22, as perhaps best illustrated in FIGS.1, 3, and 4 , which is supported on the chassis 12 below the balingchambers 18. In some embodiments, the pickup mechanism 22 may extenddown from the chassis 12 and may be positioned in front of the wheels16. As such, the pickup mechanism 22 may be centered about alongitudinal centerline of the baler 10, so as to permit the pickupmechanism 22 to pick up crop material within a single windrow as thebaler 10 is advanced along a path of travel by the towing vehicle (i.e.,with the path of travel extending over the path presented by thewindrow). To facilitate the collection of the crop material, the pickupmechanism 22 may comprise a tined, rotating member, which is configuredto pick up the crop material of the windrow off the ground. Upon pickingup the crop material, the pickup mechanism 22 will be further configuredto transfer the crop material upward and rearward to a rotor housing 24illustrated in FIGS. 1-5 .

The rotor housing 24 may also be positioned below the baling chamber 18and is generally configured to rotatably support a rotor 26 within therotor housing 24. The rotor 26 is shown in more detail in FIG. 6 . Therotor 26 may be configured to convey the crop material from the rotorhousing 24, as illustrated in FIG. 4 , rearward to one or more stufferchutes 28. The stuffer cutes 28 are perhaps best illustrated in FIGS. 4,7, and 8 . In some embodiments, the baler 10 may include the same numberof stuffer chutes 28 as baling chambers 18, such that crop material maybe passed from each stuffer chute 28 into a specific baling chamber 18.For example, the embodiment of the baler 10 illustrated in the figuresincludes two baling chambers 18. As such, the baler 10 of the figuresmay correspondingly include two stuffer chutes 28, with each stufferchute 28 being associated with one baling chamber 18 so as to providecrop material to the associated baling chamber 18.

Returning to the rotor housing 24 and the rotor 26, the rotor housing 24and/or the rotor 26 may be particularly configured to direct cropmaterial received from the pickup mechanism 22 generally evenly intoeach stuffer chute 28 of the baler 10. For example, as illustrated byFIG. 6 , the rotor 26 may be formed as an auger with one or more augerflightings and/or toothed sections configured to direct crop materialgenerally evenly into each stuffer chute 28. In more detail, the rotor26 may comprise a spindle 30 from which is extended a first toothedsection 32, a second toothed section 34, and an interior auger-flightedsection 36 located between the first and second toothed sections 32, 34.The first and second toothed sections 32, 34 may each include aplurality of tooth elements extending outward from the spindle 30. Theinterior auger-flighted section 36 may include one or more sets ofhelically-shaped auger flightings. In some embodiments, the interiorauger-flighted section 36 may include a first set of interior flights 38configured to push crop material in a first direction and a second setof interior flights 39 configured to push crop material in a seconddirection generally opposite from the first direction. For example, thefirst set of interior flights 38 may be configured to push crop materialoutwardly toward the first toothed section 32, and the second set ofinterior flights 39 may be configured to push crop material outwardlytoward the second toothed section 34.

In some embodiments, the rotor 26 may further comprise a first exteriorauger-flighted section 40 and a second exterior auger-flighted section42 positioned on either end of the spindle 30. As such, the firsttoothed section 32 may be situated between the first exteriorauger-flighted section 40 and the interior auger-flighted section 36(e.g., the first set of interior flights 38). Similarly, the secondtoothed section 34 may be situated between the second exteriorauger-flighted section 42 and the interior auger-flighted section 36(e.g., the second set of interior flights 39). As such, the firstexterior auger-flighted section 40 is configured to push crop materialinwardly toward the first toothed section 32, whereas the secondexterior auger-flighted section 42 is configured to push crop materialinwardly toward the second toothed section 34. State differently thefirst exterior auger flighted section 40 is configured to push crop in afirst direction and the second set of interior flighted section 42 isconfigured to push crop in a second direction generally opposite thefirst direction.

To further facilitate the distributions and processing of crop material,some embodiments of the baler 10 may include a stationary separationelement 44 extending upward from a bottom panel of the rotor housing 24.In some embodiments, the separation element 44 may have a sharpenedforward edge so as to act as a blade-like dividing member for cuttingcrop material that is forced into contact with the separation element44. In some embodiments, the rotor 26 may include a gap between thefirst and second sets of interior flights 38, 39 of the interiorauger-flighted section 36, such that the separation element 44 can be atleast partly received in the gap as the rotor 26 rotates. In somefurther embodiments, the rotor 26 may further comprise a first interiortooth 46 and second interior tooth 48, which are both positioned betweenthe first and second sets of interior flights 38, 39 of the interiorauger-flighted section 36. In some embodiments, the first and secondinterior teeth 46, 48 may be spaced apart from each other so as topresent the gap between the first and second sets of interior flights38, 39 of the interior auger-flighted section 36. As such, the first setof interior flights 38 may terminate at the first interior tooth 46,while the second set of interior flights 39 may terminate at said secondinterior tooth 48. Thus, in such embodiments, the first and secondinterior teeth 46, 48 may be configured to pass on either side of theseparation element 44 when the rotor 26 is rotating.

Given the above-described rotor 26 and the separation element 44,embodiments provide for crop material provided to the rotor housing 24by the pickup mechanism 22 to be directed generally evenly to each ofthe stuffer chutes 28. In more detail, the baler 10 may, as illustratedin the FIGS. 7 and 8 , include two stuffer chutes 28 and two balingchambers 18, with each stuffer chute 28 being associated with one of thebaling chambers 18. For example, as shown in FIG. 7 , left-side thestuffer chutes 28 may be associated with a left-side baling chamber 18.As shown in FIG. 8 , right-side stuffer chutes 28 may be associated witha right-side baling chamber 18. Each of the stuffer chutes 28 maycomprise a lower entrance and an upper exit. As such, and as perhapsbest illustrated in FIG. 4 , crop material is provided from the pickupmechanism 22 into the stuffer chutes 28 via the lower entrances of thestuffer chutes 28, while crop material exits from the stuffer chutes 28(e.g., into the baling chambers 18) via the upper exits of the stufferchutes 28. In some embodiments, the lower entrance of each stuffer chute28 will be wider (or will generally have a larger internal crosssection) than the upper exit. As such, crop material introduced into thestuffer chutes 28 can be pre-compressed during travel from the lowerentrance to the upper exit in preparation for introduction into thebaling chambers 18. In some embodiments, a ratio of a width (or internalcross section size) of the lower entrance of the stuffer chutes 28 to awidth (or internal cross section size) of the upper exit of the stufferchutes is at least 1.1:1, at least 1.25:1, or at least 1.5:1, and/or notmore than 2.5:1, not more than 2:1, or not more than 1.75:1.

To evenly distribute the crop material to the stuffer chutes 28, thefirst toothed section 32 of the rotor 26 may be aligned with theleft-side stuffer chute 28, and the second toothed section 34 of therotor 26 may be aligned with the right-side stuffer chute 28. As such,when the rotor 26 is rotated (e.g., generally in a counter-clockwisedirection when viewing from the left side of the baler 10, as in FIG. 4), the first and second toothed sections 32, 34 can force crop materialreceived from the pickup mechanism 22 downward below the rotor 26 andrearward into the respective stuffer chutes 28. As perhaps bestillustrated in FIG. 5 , crop material that is received into the rotorhousing 24 from the pickup mechanism 22 at a location adjacent to acenter of the rotor 26 may be forced outwardly by the interiorauger-flighted section 36 towards either the first or second toothedsection 32, 34. In some embodiments, portions of the crop material willcome into contact with the stationary separation element 44 extendingupward from the bottom panel of the rotor housing 24. As notedpreviously, the separation element 44 may extend upward from generally acenter of the bottom panel of the rotary housing 24, such that theseparation element 44 extends upward into the gap presented by the firstand second interior teeth 46, 48. Thus, crop material may be cut by theseparation element 44, as the crop material is forced into thestationary element by the rotating first and second interior teeth 46,48. The separation element 44 may be positioned generally between thelower entrances of the stuffer chutes 28. As such, crop material cut bythe separation element 44 can be forced outward by the interiorauger-flighted section 36 towards either the first or second toothedsection 32, 34, so as to be provided to the respective stuffer chutes28. Furthermore, crop material that is received into the rotor housing24 from the pickup mechanism 22 at locations adjacent to ends of therotor 26 may be forced inwards by the first and second exteriorauger-flighted section 40, 42 respectively toward either the first orsecond toothed section 32, 34, so as to be provided to the respectivestuffer chutes 28.

Thus, the baler 10 is particularly configured to collect crop materialfrom a single windrow and process such crop material into a plurality ofcrop streams. For example, in embodiments that include two balingchambers 18, the crop material may be provided in a first crop stream toa first of the stuffer chutes 28 (e.g., the left-side stuffer chute 28),and in a second crop stream to a second of the stuffer cutes 28 (e.g.,the left-side stuffer chute 28). As will be described in more detailbelow, crop material from the first crop stream may be transferredthrough the left-side stuffer chute 28 to the left-side baling chamber18 for formation of bales of crop material. Similarly, crop materialfrom the second crop stream may be transferred through the right-sidestuffer chute 28 to the right-side baling chamber 18 for formation ofbales of crop material.

In some embodiments, each of the stuffer chutes 28 may be associatedwith stuffer assembly 50, as shown in FIGS. 7 and 8 , for forcing cropmaterial to flow rearward and/or upward through the stuffer chute 28from the lower entrance to the upper exit. Each stuffer assembly 50 mayinclude a base element 50(a) and plurality of stuffer forks 50(b)extending from the base element 50(a). The stuffer forks 50(b) areconfigured to extend through slots formed in forward panels of thestuffer chutes 28, such that the stuffer forks 50(b) can be caused topass along a length of the stuffer chute 28 (from the lower entrance tothe upper exit) so as to force crop material from the lower entrance tothe upper exit. As will be described in more detail below, actuation ofthe stuffer fork 50(b) of the stuffer assemblies 50 through the stufferchutes 28 may be caused by rotation of the base elements 50(a) of thestuffer assemblies 50. As was described previously, the width and/or theinternal cross section of the upper exit of each stuffer chute 28 isgenerally smaller than that of the lower entrance. As such, the cropmaterial passing from the lower entrance to the upper exit of a stufferchute 28 will experience a compressive force (i.e., a pre-compression onthe crop material exerted by sides of the stuffer chute 28) before thecrop material is provided to its associated baling chamber 18. Asillustrated in FIGS. 4, 7, and 8 , the upper exit of each stuffer chute28 is in communication with a forward end of its associated balingchamber 18 (at a bottom side of the baling chamber 18), so thatpre-compressed crop material can be provided into the baling chamber 18.Each rotation of the stuffer assembly 50 may force a “charge” of cropmaterial into its associated baling chamber 18.

Upon introduction of a charge of crop material into one of the balingchambers 18, the baler 10 is configured to further compress the cropmaterial into a square bale of crop material. As illustrated in FIGS. 1,2, 4, 7, and 8 , each baling chamber 18 may generally comprise anelongated chamber with a crop inlet at a forward end for receivingcharges of crop material from the associated stuffer chute 28 and a baledischarge at a rearward end from which square bales of crop material aredischarged from the baling chamber 18 and the baler 10. The crop inletof each baling chamber 18 may be positioned at the bottom of the balingchamber 18, as illustrated in FIGS. 4, 7 , and 8, such that balingchambers are considered “bottom fed,” with charges of crop materialbeing provided into the baling chambers from below the baling chambers18 via associated stuffer chutes 28.

As illustrated in FIGS. 9 and 10 , each baling chamber 18 may beassociated with a plunger 52 configured to compressing the crop materialwithin the baling chamber 18 to form the square bale of crop material.The plungers 52 may each comprise a generally rectangular head having asize at least nominally smaller than a bailing chamber 18, such that theplunger can reciprocate within the baling chamber 18 to compact cropmaterial into a bale. In more detail, in the embodiments shown in thefigures, the baler 10 may include two plungers 52, with each plunger 52being associated with one of the baling chambers 18. Each plunger 52 maybe reciprocated within its respective baling chamber 18 between aretracted position and an extended position. In the retracted position(e.g., the solid line plunger 52 of FIG. 4 ), the plunger 52 may bepositioned forward of the baling chamber's 18 crop inlet, such that acharge of crop material may be introduced into the baling chamber 18from the associated stuffer chute 28. Upon introduction of the charge ofcrop material into the baling chamber 18, the plunger 52 may be actuatedrearward in a compaction stroke (e.g., the dashed line plunger 52 ofFIG. 4 ) so as to compress the charge of crop material into a flake of asquare bale. The plunger 52 will continue reciprocating betweenretracted and extended positions, as charges of crop material are addedinto the baling chamber 18, so as to compress crop material into a fullyformed square bale. By having multiple baling chambers 18, each beingassociated within its own plunger 52, the baler 10 is configured tosimultaneously create multiple bales of crop material, with such cropmaterial being obtained by the baler 10 from a single windrow.

In more detail, and with reference to FIG. 2 , each baling chamber 18may be generally rectangular with a pair of sidewalls 54, a top wall 56,and a bottom wall 58. In some embodiments, the walls 54, 56, 58 may eachbe formed from one or more rails that are configured and/or securedtogether in a rectangular shape. As such, the walls 54, 56, 58 of eachbaling chamber 18 define an interior baling space within which theplunger 52 can extend and retract so as to compress crop material intosquare bales. The interior baling space is generally of a fixeddimension, such that each new charge of crop material received from theassociated stuffer chute 28 can be packed and compressed rearwardly as aflake of crop material against previously compacted flakes that willcollectively form a bale of crop material.

In some embodiments, a cross-sectional area of each baling chamber 18may decrease moving from a forward end to a rearward end of the balingchamber 18. Such a reduction in a cross-sectional area can facilitatethe ability of the baling chambers 18 to compress the crop material intosquare bales during formation of the bales. As such, the baling chambers18 may be configured to exert pressure on all four sides of the bales asthe bales move rearward through the baling chambers 18. Furthermore, insome embodiments, each baling chamber 18 may include an independentcompression assembly 60, as shown in FIG. 2 , for aiding in compressionof the walls 54, 56, 58 of the baling chambers 18. In some embodiments,the compression assemblies 60 may be positioned near the rearward endsof the baling chambers 18. Each compression assembly 60 may include avertical compression mechanism for adjusting a vertical distance betweenthe top wall 56 and the bottom wall 58, as well as a horizontalcompression mechanism for adjusting the horizontal distance between thesidewalls 54. In some embodiments, each of the vertical and horizontalcompression mechanisms may comprise hydraulic, pneumatic, or electricalcylinders, configured to be manually or automatedly adjustable. As such,each baling chamber 18 may be configured, e.g., due to the compressionprovided by the compression assembly 60, to exert pressure on all foursides of the bales formed therein. In addition to facilitatingcompression, in some embodiments, the compression assemblies 60 may alsobe used to adjust the size of the discharge openings presented by therearward ends of the baling chambers 18. The use of independentcompression assemblies 60 with each baling chamber 18, allows for thebaler 10 to establish a set pressure on each side of a bale being formedin a given baling chamber 18 so as to minimize variation in bale lengthand density.

As noted above, the baler 10 according to embodiments of the presentinvention may include a plurality of baling chambers 18, each beingconfigured to generate individual square bales of crop material. Assuch, the baler 10 can simultaneously form multiple square bales fromcrop material obtained from a single windrow. In some embodiments, asillustrated in the figures, the baler 10 will include two spaced apart,side-by-side baling chambers 18. Such baling chambers 18 may extend in agenerally fore-and-aft direction with respect to the chassis 12. Thebaling chambers 18 may extend in a generally parallel relationship witheach other (and/or with the longitudinal centerline of the of thechassis 12 and/or the baler 10), with one baling chamber 18 positionedon one side of the longitudinal centerline of the chassis 12 of thebaler 10, and the other baling chamber 18 positioned on the other sideof the longitudinal centerline of the chassis 12 of the baler 10. Insome embodiments, the baling chambers 18 may be spaced from one anotherby not more than sixty inches, not more than forty-eight inches, notmore than thirty-six inches, or not more than twenty-four inches. Inalternative or additional embodiments, the baling chambers 18 may bespaced from one another by at least one inch, at least three inches, atleast six inches, at least twelve inches, or at least eighteen inches.Beneficially, having the baling chambers 18 spaced apart can make itsimpler to implement mechanisms that handle, accumulate, and/or sortbales that are formed in and dispensed from the baling chambers 18.

In alternative embodiments, the baling chambers 18 may not be spacedapart from each other. For example, the baling chambers 18 may beseparated by (or share) a common interior wall, such that no air gapexists between the baling chambers 18. For example, the common interiorwall may comprise the interior sidewall 54 of the adjacent balingchambers 18, such that the baling chambers 18 are not spaced apart. Insome embodiments, an entire length of the baling chambers 18 may beseparated by the common interior wall.

In some further embodiments, the baling chambers 18 may not be separatedby any interior walls. For example, four walls (e.g., a pair ofsidewalls 54, a top wall 56, and a bottom wall 58) may define a commoninterior baling space that includes two baling chambers 18. As such, thetwo baling chambers 18 can share a common interior baling space so thattwo bales can be simultaneously formed within the common interior balingspace.

As was noted above, each of the baling chambers 18 may include a plunger52 for compacting crop material in the baling chamber 18 to form asquare bale of crop material. In an embodiment of the baler 10 thatinclude two baling chambers 18, as shown in the figures, the baler 10may include two plungers 52 (See, e.g., FIGS. 9 and 10 ). In suchembodiments, the plungers 52 may be driven, directly or indirectly, by acommon gearbox 70, which is illustrated in FIGS. 1-4, 9, and 10 . Thegearbox 70 may be supported on top of the chassis 12 and positionedadjacent to the front of the chassis 12. As such, a rotating powersource, such as power take-off 72 from the tow vehicle (See, e.g., FIGS.1 and 2 ), may be engaged with the gearbox 70 to provide rotary powerfrom the tow vehicle to the baler 10. As illustrated in FIG. 1 , thegearbox 70 may comprise an input element 73, which is configured to berotated by the rotating power source, e.g., the power take-off 72, aboutan input axis of rotation so as to provide rotational power to thegearbox 70. The baler 10 may additionally include a flywheel 74positioned between the gearbox 70 and the power take-off 72, which isconfigured to store rotational energy for provision to the gearbox 70 asnecessary. In some alternative embodiments, the baler 10 may include arotating power source in the form of a hydraulic pump/motor (not shown).The hydraulic pump/motor may, in some embodiments, itself be engagedwith the power take-off 72 to receive power from the tow vehicle.Regardless, the gearbox 70 may be connected with the pump gearbox toreceive rotary power therefrom.

In some embodiments, as shown in FIGS. 3, 9, and 10 , the gearbox 70 maycomprise a first drive shaft section 76 extending outward from a firstside (e.g., a left side) of the gearbox 70, and a second drive shaftsection 78 outward from a second side (e.g., a right side) of thegearbox 70. As such, the first and second drive shaft sections 76, 78may extend outwardly from generally opposite sides of the gearbox 70.The first and second drive shaft sections 76, 78 may be configured torotate on respective first and second drive shaft axes of rotation. Incertain embodiments, each of the first and second drive shaft axes ofrotation is angled relative to the input axis of rotation of the gearbox70 (as presented by the input element 73) between sixty and one-hundredtwenty degrees, between seventy and one-hundred degrees, or betweeneighty and one hundred degrees. In some embodiments, the first andsecond drive shaft axes of rotation may be skewed. In other embodiments,the first and second drive shaft axes of rotation may be parallel orcolinear. For example, the first and second drive shaft sections 76, 78may be configured to rotate on a common substantially horizontal axis ofrotation. The gearbox 70 may further include a common drive shaftextending through the gearbox 70 and comprising the first and seconddrive shaft sections 76, 78.

In general, the gearbox 70 is configured as a rotating power source thatis used to rotate the first and second drive shaft sections 76, 78 usingpower from the external rotating power source, e.g., the power take-off72. In some embodiments, the gearbox will be configured to rotate thefirst and second drive shaft sections 76, 78 at generally equal speeds(i.e., at equivalent rates of rotation). In embodiments of the baler 10that include two plungers 52, as illustrated in FIGS. 3, 9, and 10 , aleft-side plunger 52 may be coupled to the first drive shaft section 76,while a right-side plunger 52 may be coupled to the second drive shaftsection 78. As such, the left-side plunger 52 may be positioned on anopposite side of the gearbox 70 as the right-side plunger 52. Asillustrated in FIGS. 9 and 10 , each of the drive shaft sections 76, 78may be connected to a respective plunger 52 via a connecting element 80that is pivotally connected between the plunger 52 and respective onesof the drive shaft sections 76, 78 so as to transfer the generallycircular movement of the drive shaft sections 76, 78 to reciprocationactuations of the plungers 52. To further facilitate such reciprocatingactuation, each plunger 52 may include an elongated connection arm, witha first end pivotally connected to the head of the plunger 52 and asecond end pivotally connected to the connecting element 80.

Under power from the gearbox 70, rotation of the first drive shaftsection 76 will cause reciprocation of the left-side plunger 52 androtation of the second drive shaft section 78 will cause reciprocationof the right-side plunger 52. As was described previously, each of theplungers 52 is configured to reciprocate between the extended positionand the retracted position. The gearbox 70 may, in some embodiments, beconfigured to actuate the plungers 52, such that the left-side andright-side plungers 52 are reciprocated in an alternative fashion. Assuch, when the left-side plunger 52 is in the extended position, theright-side plunger 52 is in the retracted position, and vice versa. Suchpositioning may be facilitated by the connecting elements 80 beingorientated generally one-hundred eighty degrees out of phase (in certainembodiments with two plungers 52). For instance, as shown in FIGS. 9 and10 , the left-side connecting element 80 is orientated rearward suchthat the left-side plunger 52 is in the extended position, while theright-side connecting element 80 is orientated forward such that theright-side plunger 52 is in the retracted position. Alternatively,although not shown in the drawings, the right-side connecting element 80can be orientated rearward such that the right-side plunger 52 is in theextended position, while the left-side connecting element 80 can beorientated forward such that the left-side plunger 52 is in theretracted position. The plungers 52 being offset can allow for thespreading of drive loads and allows for smaller drive components.

In some embodiments, a point of connection between the left-side plunger52 and the left-side connecting element 80 will be spaced from the axisof rotation of the first drive shaft section 76, such that theconnection may be eccentrically shaped (i.e., the connecting element 80may be an eccentric connection). In some embodiments, the first driveshaft section 76 may terminate at the left-side connecting element 80.In addition, in some embodiments, the point of connecting between theright-side plunger 52 and the right-side connecting element 80 will bespaced from the axis of rotation of the second drive shaft section 78,such that the connection may be eccentrically shaped (i.e., theconnecting element 80 may be an eccentric connection). In someembodiments, the second drive shaft section 78 may terminate at theright-side connection element 80.

As was briefly noted above, in some embodiments, the left-side andright-side connecting elements 80 may be rotationally offset from oneanother with respect to the rotation of the first and second drive shaftsections 76, 78. In some specific embodiments, the left-side andright-side connecting elements 80 may be rotationally offset from oneanother by about one-hundred eighty degrees, about one-hundred twentydegrees, or about ninety degrees with respect to the axes of rotation ofthe first and second drive shaft sections 76, 78. In other embodiments,the left-side and right-side connecting elements 80 may be rotationallyaligned with one another with respect to the axes of rotation of saidfirst and second drive shaft sections 76, 78. In further embodiments,the relative rotational positioning of the left-side and right-sideconnecting elements 80 with respect to the rotation of said first andsecond drive shaft sections 76, 78 may either be i) aligned with oneanother or ii) offset from one another by an amount of rotationaldegrees approximately equal to three-hundred and sixty divided by thetotal number of reciprocating plungers 52 included in the baler 10.Thus, in embodiments of the baler 10 that include two plungers 52, therelative rotational positioning of the left-side and right-sideconnecting elements 80 with respect to the rotation of said first andsecond drive shaft sections 76, 78 may be about one-hundred and eightydegrees. Nevertheless, it should be understood that in some embodiments,the baler 10 may include more than two plungers 52, such that theconnecting element 80 may be offset by different magnitudes.

In some further embodiments of the gearbox 70, the first drive shaftsection 76 may include an auxiliary drive shaft 84, as perhaps bestillustrated in FIGS. 3 and 9 , which extends outwardly from and/or pastthe left-side connecting element 80. In alternative embodiments, theauxiliary drive shaft 84 may be included as part of the second driveshaft section 78 and may extend outwardly from and/or past the left-sideconnecting element 80. In further alternatives, the gearbox 70 mayinclude a pair of auxiliary drive shafts 84, with one associated witheach of the first drive shaft section 76 and the second drive shaftsection 78. The baler 10 may comprise at least one auxiliary drivenmechanism directly or indirectly powered by the auxiliary drive shaft84. For example, such an auxiliary driven mechanism may comprise thepickup mechanism 22, the rotor 26, the stuffer assemblies 50, and/or oneor more knotter assemblies (described in more detail below). The baler10 may include one or more chains, belts, or the like that interconnectgears, sprockets, pulleys, etc. associated with the auxiliary driveshaft 84 and the auxiliary driven mechanisms. As such, the auxiliarydrive shaft 84 can provide power (e.g., rotary power) to the auxiliarydriven mechanisms.

For example, as illustrated in FIG. 1 , a distal end of the auxiliarydrive shaft 84 may include a sprocket, which rotates simultaneously withthe auxiliary drive shaft 84. A chain may connect the sprocket of theauxiliary drive shaft 84 with a drive input assembly 86 associated withone of the stuffer assemblies 50 (e.g., the left-side stuffer assembly50), as illustrated in FIG. 1 . The drive input assembly 86 may includea sprocket that can be engaged with the chain extending from thesprocket of the auxiliary drive shaft 84. As such, the drive inputassembly 86 may be configured to receive rotary power from the auxiliarydrive shaft 84. As illustrated in FIG. 5 , the drive input assembly 86may be connected to the base element 50(a) of one of the stufferassemblies 50 (e.g., the left-side stuffer assembly 50) via a connectionelement. As such, rotation of the drive input assembly 86 (as caused bythe auxiliary drive shaft 84) will provide a corresponding rotation tothe base element 50(a) of the left-side stuffer assembly 50, therebypowering the left-side stuffer assembly 50 for operation.

As described above, in certain embodiments, the baler 10 may include twostuffer assemblies 50. In some of such embodiments, one of the stufferassemblies 50 (e.g., the left-side stuffer assembly 50) may be connectedwith the other stuffer assembly 50 (e.g., the right-side stufferassembly 50), such that rotation of the left-side stuffer assembly 50will cause a corresponding rotation of the right-side stuffer assembly50. For example, as illustrated in FIG. 11 , the left-side andright-side stuffer assemblies 50 may be interconnected by a connectionelement 87 that permits a rotation of one of the left-side or right-sidestuffer assemblies 50 to cause a rotation of the other of the left-sideor right-side stuffer assemblies 50. For instance, as discussed above,the auxiliary driveshaft 84 may provide rotational power to theleft-side stuffer assembly via the drive input assembly 86. Suchrotation of the left-side stuffer assembly 50 may cause a correspondingrotation of the right-side stuffer assembly via the connection element87. In some additional embodiments, as illustrated in FIG. 11 , the baseelement 50(a) of the right-side stuffer assembly 50 may be connected toa drive output assembly 88 via a connection element. As will bedescribed in more detail below, the drive output assembly 88 may be usedto provide rotary power to other components of the baler 10.

Some embodiments provide for the left-side and right-side stufferassemblies 50 to be offset by one-hundred and eighty degrees. As such,for instance, when the left-side stuffer assembly 50 is in an upward ortop position, the right-side stuffer assembly 50 will be in the lower orbottom position. In addition, the position of the stuffer assemblies 50may, in some embodiments, correspond with the positions of the plungers52. For example, when the left-side stuffer assembly 50 is in the upwardor top position, the left-side plunger 52 will be in the retractedposition, such that crop material may be fed into the left-side balingchamber 18 by the left-side stuffer assembly 50. In such aconfiguration, the right-side stuffer assembly 50 will be in a lower orbottom position and the right-side plunger 52 will be in the extendedposition. As such, when the left-side stuffer assembly 50 is in the topposition, the left-side plunger 52 will correspondingly be in theretracted position, such that crop material may be fed into theleft-side baling chamber 18 from the left-side stuffer chute 28 by theleft-side stuffer assembly 50 in preparation for compression stroke bythe left-side plunger 52 to form a compacted square bale within theleft-side baling chamber 18.

From the configuration discussed above, the gearbox 70 can rotate thestuffer assemblies 50, e.g., via the connection (e.g., the chains andsprockets) between the auxiliary drive shaft 84 and the stufferassemblies 50 (e.g., via the drive input assembly 86), such that theright-side stuffer assembly 50 is shifted to the top position and theleft-side stuffer assembly 50 is shifted to the bottom position. Duringsuch actuation, the gearbox 70 can simultaneously shift the right-sideplunger 52 (e.g., via the second drive shaft element 78) to theretracted position and the left-side plunger 52 (e.g., via the firstdrive shaft element 76) to the extended position. As such, when theright-side stuffer assembly 50 is in the top position, the right-sideplunger 52 will correspondingly be in the retracted position, such thatcrop material may be fed into the right-side baling chamber 18 by theright-side stuffer assembly 50 in preparation for compression stroke bythe right-side plunger 52 to form a compacted square bale within theright-side baling chamber 18. In such a configuration, the left-sidestuffer assembly 50 will be in the bottom position and the left-sideplunger 52 will be in the extended position. As such, while theright-side plunger 52 is compacting crop material to form a bale, theleft-side stuffer assembly 50 is in the downward position preparing tocollect and push crop material upward through the left-side stufferchute 28 once the left-side plunger 52 has been retracted.

In some embodiments, as shown in FIG. 1 , the auxiliary drive shaft 84may be further connected with the rotor 26 (e.g., via chain andsprockets), such that rotation of the auxiliary drive shaft 84 willcause actuation of the rotor 26 within the rotor housing 24. Similarly,in some embodiments, the auxiliary drive shaft 84 may be connected withthe pickup mechanism 22 (e.g., via chain and sprockets), such thatrotation of the auxiliary drive shaft 84 will cause actuation of thetined rotating member of the pickup mechanism 22. Alternatively, asshown in FIG. 2 , the pickup mechanism 22 may be interconnected with therotor 26 (e.g., via chain and sprockets), such that rotation of therotor 26 (e.g., as perhaps caused by the auxiliary drive shaft 84) maycause a corresponding rotation of the tined rotating member of thepickup mechanism 22.

In addition to the auxiliary driven mechanisms discussed above, someembodiments of the baler 10 may include a plurality of knotterassemblies 90, as shown in FIGS. 1-3 and 11-13 , for tying one or moresecurement lines (e.g., twine, wire, cord, etc.) around the square balesof crop material being formed in the baling chambers 18. In someembodiments, the baler 10 may include one knotter assembly 90 for eachbaling chamber 18, such that each bale of crop material may be wrappedand tied with securement lines. In some embodiments, each knotterassembly 90 may include a pair of knotting mechanisms 92, as illustratedin FIGS. 2, 3, and 11 , each configured to wrap and tie a securementline around each square bale formed in the associated baling chamber 18.For instance, the left-side knotter assembly 90 may include a pair ofknotting mechanisms 92, and the right-side knotter assembly 90 mayinclude a pair of knotting mechanisms 92. As such, in some embodiments,the baler 10 may provide for each bale of crop material formed in eachbaling chamber 18 to be tied with two securement lines. Each knottingmechanism 92 may include the components necessary to apply a securementline around a bale of crop material and to securely tie/knot thesecurement line onto the bale. For example, each knotting mechanism 92may include: a knotter disc, a billhook assembly (e.g., a billhook, abillhook spring, a billhook cam, a billhook pinion), strand holder,strand knife, etc. Each knotter assembly 90 may include a rotatableshaft 93, which may be configured as an axle, and which is configuredactuate various of the components of the associated knotting mechanisms92. As such, the left-side knotter assembly 90 may include one rotatableshaft 93, and the right-side knotter assembly may include one rotatableshaft 93.

In addition, each of the knotter assemblies 90 may include one or moreneedles 94, as illustrated in FIGS. 11-13 , operably associated witheach knotting mechanism 92. Each of the needles 94 may be used to wrap asecurement line completely around a bale of crop material once the baleis fully formed, such that the associated knotting mechanism 92 can tiethe securement line securely around the fully formed bale. FIG. 12illustrates a needle in a lowered position, holding a securement linebelow a bale as the bale is being formed in the baling chamber 18. Thesecurement line may be obtained from a spool of securement line held inan un-shown container or compartment of the baler 10. FIG. 13illustrates the needle 94 in a raised position, such that the needle 94brings the securement line up to the knotting mechanism 92 for tying offaround the bale. Upon the needle 94 being lowered from the raisedposition, the needle 94 will start a subsequent strand of securementline around the subsequently-formed bale. It should be understood thatFIGS. 12 and 13 illustrate a single knotting mechanism 92 and a singleneedle 94, which can be used to wrap and tie a single securement linearound a bale. However, as was noted above, each knotter assembly 90 mayinclude a plurality of knotting mechanisms 92 and a correspondingplurality of needles 94, such that each knotter assembly 90 can beconfigured to wrap and tie a plurality of (e.g., two) securement linesaround a bales being formed in a baling chamber 18.

As illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2 , each knotter assembly 90 mayadditionally comprise a trip mechanism 96 that can be used to initiatethe tying process once a bale of crop material has been fully formed.With reference to FIGS. 12 and 13 , each trip mechanism 96 may include astarwheel 98, a measuring assembly 100, and a clutch mechanism 104configured to permit associated knotting mechanisms 92 to tie a knotaround a bale of crop material upon the bale being formed to apre-selected size. In more detail, the starwheel 98 may be configured toengage a top surface of a bale of crop material as the bale is beingformed within the baling chamber 18. Specifically, the starwheel 98 isconfigured walk along a top surface of the bale, such that the starwheel98 rotates about a shaft 106 as the bale moves rearward through thebaling chamber 18. The shaft 106 may be operably engaged with themeasuring assembly 100, which comprises a notched arc and a pair of triparms. As the starwheel 98 rotates, the shaft 106 will engage with thenotched arc, so as to actuate the trip arms. The trip arms can beoperably connected to the clutch mechanism 104. The clutch mechanism 104may include a sprocket 105 that is constantly driven, directly orindirectly as will be discussed in more detail below, by the auxiliarydrive shaft 84 of the gearbox 70. Embodiments provide for the clutchmechanism 104 to be selectively engaged so as to drive the rotatableshaft 93 and, thus, the knotting mechanisms 92 of the associated knotterassembly 90. In addition, the clutch mechanism 104 may also be operablyconnected to a needle frame 108 that supports the needles 94 of theassociated knotter assembly 90, such that the selective engagement ofthe clutch mechanism 104 will actuate the needle frame 108 and theneedles 94 thereon from the lowered position (e.g., FIG. 12 ) to theraised position (e.g., FIG. 13 ). It should be understood that althoughFIGS. 12 and 13 illustrate the left-side knotter assembly 90 with theleft-sided trip mechanism 96 discussed above, the right-side knotterassembly 90 includes a right-side trip mechanism 96 with generally thesame components and that functions in generally the same manner as theleft-sided trip mechanisms 96.

Embodiments provide for the trip mechanism 96 of each knotter assembly90 to be particularly configured (e.g., due to a size of the starwheel98 and/or to additional configurations of the measuring assembly 100) soas to initiate the tying of knots of the securement lines by eachknotting mechanism 92 of the knotter assembly 90 once a bale has beenfully formed to the appropriate size (e.g., the appropriate length).Broadly, the measuring assembly 100 will be configured to measure a sizeand/or length of bales being formed in the baling chambers 18. In moredetail, as a bale of crop material is being formed in a baling chamber18 (i.e., via the cyclical compressions of flakes of crop material bythe reciprocating plunger 52), the bale will travel rearward through thebaling chamber 18. In embodiments in which each knotter assembly 90includes two knotting mechanisms 92, each knotting mechanism 92 willhold a securement line, such that the two securement lines will extenddownward through the baling chamber 18 to tips of the respective needle94. As the bale travels rearward, the two securement lines will wrapagainst a rear surface of the bale, as well as over a top and bottom ofthe bale, as illustrated in FIG. 12 . During such travel, the starwheel98 will walk along the top surface of the bale until the pre-determinedbale length has been reached (e.g., as configured by the measuringassembly 100). At such time, the measuring assembly 100 will engage theclutch mechanism 104 so as to simultaneously cause rotation of the shaft93 and actuation of the needle frame 108. Specifically, as shown in FIG.13 , the needle frame 108 will be actuated so as to force the pair ofneedles 94 upward, each bringing their securement line upward around afront side of the bale and adjacent to a corresponding knottingmechanism 92 that will tie the securement line securely onto the bale.The securement lines will be cut, so as to similarly allow for anothersecurement line to be wrapped around and securely tied to asubsequently-formed bale of crop material. Upon being wrapped with thesecurement lines, the formed bale can be ejected from bale discharge atthe rear end of the baling chamber 18.

In some alternative embodiments, the baler 10 may include tripmechanisms 96 that comprise electronic measuring assemblies that mayinclude electrical and/or electro-mechanical components. For example,each starwheel 98 may be associated with an electronic sensor formeasuring a length of the bale passing through the relevant balingchamber 18. The electronic sensor may be a rotary encoder, an opticalsensor, or the like. The electronic sensor may measure the length of thebale passing through the associated baling chamber 18, and the resultingbale length data may be provided to an electronic control unitpositioned on the baler 10 or on the tow vehicle The electronic controlunit may include memory elements and processing elements configured toanalyze the bale length data for a bale and to send resultinginstructions to the clutch mechanism 104 upon the bale reaching apre-determined bale length. In more detail, the electronic sensor mayobtain bale length data for a given bale and may provide such balelength data to the electronic control unit. Upon the electronic controlunit determining from the bale length data that the given bale hasreached a fully-formed length (as may be pre-determined/pre-defined),the electronic control unit may send a signal or instruction to theclutch mechanism 104 to cause actuation of the knotting mechanisms 92and related needles 94 so as to tie off securement lines around thefully formed bale. In embodiments in which the baler 10 includesmultiple baling chambers 18 (each having its own starwheel 98 and clutchmechanism 104), each starwheel 98 may include its own electronic sensorfor measuring the lengths of the bales being formed in its associatedbaling chamber 18. The electronic control unit may receive bale lengthdata from each electronic sensor and may send independent instructionsto each clutch mechanism 104 to tie off the bales in each baling chamberonce each bale has been fully formed to the pre-determined bale length.

Beneficially, the knotter assemblies 90 of the baler 10 are configuredto operate independently of one another. As such, the bales being formedin each of the baling chambers 18 can be wrapped and tied at differenttimes, when the bales have been fully formed. For example, if two balesare being formed in the baler 10, one in the left-side baling chamber 18and one in the right-side baling chamber 18, the left-side knotterassembly 90 can tie off the securement lines around the bale beingformed in the left-side baling chamber 18 when the bale is fully formed(i.e., to the predetermined bale length), and the right-side knotterassembly 90 can tie off the securement lines around the bale beingformed in the right-side baling chamber 18 when the bale is fully formed(i.e., to the predetermined bale length). However, because such balesmay become fully formed at different times, e.g. due to variations inthe amount of crop material being provided to the individual balingchambers 18, the knotter assemblies 90 associated with each balingchamber 18 may initiate tying of the securement lines at differenttimes. As such, the baler 10 can be prevented from tying of short (orlong) bales, which can create problems with stacking, transporting, andretailing of such bales. The independent operation of the knotterassemblies 90 will be described in further detail below.

In operation, the baler 10 described above may be configured tosimultaneously produce multiple bales of crop material from a singlewindrow. The number of bales that may be simultaneously formed by thebaler 10 is at least partly dependent on the number of baling chambers18 included in the baler 10. As discussed above, the baler 10 mayinclude a plurality of baling chambers 18. The embodiments shown in thedrawings illustrate the baler 10 including two, inline baling chambers18. However, it should be understood that certain embodiments of thebaler 10 may include more than two baling chambers 18 (e.g., three,four, five, six, or more). In general, the baler 10 will be equippedwith a number of stuffer chutes 28, stuffer assemblies 50, plungers 52,and knotter assemblies 90 that corresponds with and/or that is equal tothe number of baling chambers 18. As such, the baler 10 will beconfigured to adequately provide crop material to each of the balingchambers 18 to create the bales of crop material.

The following example illustrates a baler 10 with a pair of balingchambers 18, which can be used to simultaneously form multiple squarebales of crop material. As the baler 10 is pulled along its path oftravel by the tow vehicle, the pickup mechanism 22 can pick up cropmaterial from a single windrow of crop material. Particularly, theplurality of tines extending from the rotating member of the pickupmechanism 22 functions to pick up the crop material from the ground andto force the crop material upwardly and rearwardly to the rotor housing24, with such flow of crop material illustrated by the arrows of FIGS. 4and 5 . From the rotor housing 24, the separation element 44 and therotor 26 (e.g., due to the specific configurations of the augerflightings and/or toothed sections) are configured to separate the cropmaterial into multiple streams for provisioning to the stuffer chutes28. In the exemplary embodiment, the baler 10 may include two stufferchutes 28, such that the separation element 44 and the rotor 26 areconfigured to separate the crop material into two generally equalstreams of crop material and to provide one stream to each of therespective stuffer chutes 28 (e.g., the left-side and the right-sidestuffer chutes 28).

While the crop material is in the stuffer chutes 28, the stufferassemblies 50 of the stuffer chutes 28 will function to propel the cropmaterial rearward and upward from the lower entrances of the stufferchutes 28 to the upper exits of the stuffer chutes 28, as illustrated inFIG. 4 . As the crop material is propelled rearward and upward, the cropmaterial will also be pre-compressed due to the restricting size of thestuffer chutes 28. Upon the crop material reaching the upper exits ofthe stuffer chutes 28, the stuffer assemblies 50 will force charges ofthe crop material into the baling chambers 18. As was previouslydescribed, the two stuffer assemblies 50 may be offset by one-hundredand eighty degrees and may both be driven by the gearbox 70, such thatthe rotation of the stuffer assembles 50 are synchronized with theplungers 52 (which are also driven by the gearbox 70).

As such, in the embodiment of the baler 10 illustrated in the drawings(i.e., with two stuffer chutes 28, two stuffer assemblies 50, two balingchambers 18, and two plungers 52), the left-side stuffer assembly 50 canbe rotated upward, due to actuation caused by the gearbox 70, so as toforce a charge of crop material from into the crop inlet of theleft-side baling chamber 18 (with the crop inlet being positioned on abottom/forward side of the left-side baling chamber 18) while theleft-side plunger 52 is in a retracted position. In such aconfiguration, the right-side stuffer assembly 50 will be in a loweredposition and the right-side plunger 52 will be in an extended position.With a charge of crop material being added into the left-side balingchamber 18, the gearbox 70 can actuate the left-side plunger 52 to theextended position to compress the charge of crop material into flake ofa bale of crop material. Such extension of the left-side plunger 52 willbe accompanied, due to actuation caused by the gearbox 70, by a shiftingof the right-side plunger 52 from the extended position to the retractedposition. Simultaneously, the right-side stuffer assembly 50 can berotated upward, due to actuation caused by the gearbox 70, so as toforce a charge of crop material into the crop inlet of the right-sidebaling chamber 18 (with the crop inlet being positioned on abottom/forward side of the right-side baling chamber 18) while theright-side plunger 52 is in a retracted position. With a charge of cropmaterial being added into the right-side baling chamber 18, the gearbox70 can actuate the right-side plunger 52 and can be extended to compressthe charge of crop material into flake of a bale of crop material. Suchactions can be repeated in a cyclical manner, as driven by the gearbox70, so as to simultaneously form square bales of crop material in eachof the left-side and right-side baling chambers 18.

As the bales are moving through each of the baling chambers 18 (e.g.,the left-side and right-side baling chambers), the knotter assemblies 90are configured to wrap and tie securement lines securely around thebales so as to hold the flakes of the bales together. Specifically, aleft-side knotter assembly 90 may use its pair of knotting mechanisms 92to wrap a pair of securement lines around the bales of crop materialpassing rearward through the left-side baling chamber 18. Upon the balereaching the predetermined length, the trip mechanism 96 of theleft-side knotter assembly 90 may cause the pair of needles 94 and thepair of knotting mechanisms 92 of the left-side knotter assembly 90 toactuate to complete the wrapping of the securement lines around the balepassing rearward through the left-side baling chamber 18 and to tie offthe securement lines securely onto the bale. Similarly, a right-sideknotter assembly 90 may use its pair of knotting mechanisms 92 to wrap apair of securement lines around the bales of crop material passingrearward through the right-side baling chamber 18. Upon the balereaching the predetermined length, the trip mechanism 96 of theright-side knotter assembly 90 may cause the pair of needles 94 and thepair of knotting mechanisms 92 of the right-side knotter assembly 90 toactuate to complete the wrapping of the securement lines around the balepassing rearward through the right-side baling chamber 18 and to tie offthe securement lines securely onto the bale.

As was noted previously, the left-side and right-side knotter assemblies90 may operate independently and at different times. To facilitate suchindependence, certain embodiments provide for the gearbox 70 toindependently provide rotational power to each of the knotter assemblies90. For example, in some embodiments, the auxiliary drive shaft 84extending from the lift-side of the gearbox 70 may be connected (e.g.,via chain and sprocket) to the sprocket 105 of the clutch mechanism 104of the left-side knotter assembly 90. The sprocket 105 can, thus, beconstantly driven by the auxiliary drive shaft 84 of the gearbox 70,such that the rotatable shaft 93 of the left-side knotter assembly canbe actuated (in addition to the needles 94 of the left-side knotterassembly 90) when engaged by the clutch mechanism 104 upon command fromthe measuring assembly 100 of the left-side knotter assembly 90. Certainembodiments may provide for the right-side knotter assembly 90 to bedriven in a similar manner by a second auxiliary drive shaft (not shown)extending from a right-side of the gearbox 70, such that the left-sideand right-side knotter assemblies 90 may operate independently and atdifferent times.

Alternatively, as illustrated in FIGS. 1, 2 and 11 , each of theleft-side and right-side knotter assemblies 90 may be independentlydriven by the auxiliary drive shaft 84 extending from the lift-side ofthe gearbox 70. Specifically, the auxiliary drive shaft 84 may beconnected (e.g., via chain and sprockets) with the drive input assembly86 so as to provide rotational power to the stuffer assemblies 50. Insome embodiments, the drive input assembly 86 may include an additionalsprocket for connecting (e.g., via a chain) with the sprocket 105 of theclutch mechanism 104 of the left-side knotter assembly 90, so as toprovide rotational power to the left-side knotter assembly 90. Inaddition, the rotational power provided to the stuffer assemblies 50 viathe drive input assembly 86 will cause a corresponding rotation of thedrive output assembly 88 on the right-side of the baler 10. The driveoutput assembly 88 may be connected (e.g., via chain and sprocket) withthe sprocket 105 of the clutch mechanism 104 of the right-side knotterassembly 90, so as to provide rotational power to the right-side knotterassembly 90. Thus, both the left-side and right-side knotter assemblies90 may be driven by the auxiliary drive shaft 84 extending from thelift-side of the gearbox 70. Nevertheless, the left-side and right-sideknotter assemblies 90 may operate independently and at different timesbased on the independent operation of their respective trip mechanisms96.

Upon the bales of crop material being completely formed and tied offwith securement lines, the bales may be ejected from ejection ports ofthe baling chambers 18. In some embodiments, the bales from each of theleft-side and right-side baling chambers 18 will be ejected from thebale discharges of their respective baling chambers 18 in an alternatingfashion. For example, due to the cyclical, reciprocating action of theleft-side and right-side plungers 52, bales of crop material formed inthe left-side baling chamber 18 may be completed in an alternating timeperiods with respect to bales formed in the right-side baling chamber18. As such, the bales of crop material formed in the left-side and theright-side baling chambers 18 may be ejected in an alternating fashion.In different embodiments, the bales of crop material formed in theleft-side baling chamber 18 may be ejected generally simultaneously asbales formed in the right-side baling chambers 18.

Although the invention has been described with reference to the one ormore embodiments illustrated in the figures, it is understood thatequivalents may be employed and substitutions made herein withoutdeparting from the scope of the invention as recited in the claims. Forexample, the baler 10 illustrated and described above may be consideredan “in-line” square baler, wherein the pickup mechanism 22, the stufferchutes 28, the plungers 52, and the baling chambers 18 are orientatedand/or aligned generally along fore-and-aft direction. As such, cropmaterial is picked up from the windrow can flows in a generally in-linemanner from the pickup mechanism 22 and the stuffer chutes 28 to thebaling chambers 18. Regardless, the principles of the present inventionmay be equally applicable to various other square and rectangular balerdesigns. For example, it is contemplated that embodiments of the presentinvention may utilize a pickup mechanism 22 that is offset from (e.g.,to one side of) the baling chambers 18.

The individual bales formed by the baler 10 may be ejected from thebaling chambers 18 in series. For example, the left side baling chamber18 may eject a first series of first individual bales (i.e., balesformed in a single row), while the right side baling chamber 18 mayeject a second series of second individual bales (i.e., bales formed ina single row). Unfortunately, it can be cumbersome and time consuming topick up and/or process bales formed in multiple series or rows. As such,embodiments of the present invention may further comprise a balesingulating system, such as singulator 200 illustrated in FIG. 14 , forprocessing a first series of first individual bales and a second seriesof second individual bales into a single row of bales.

Before describing the singulator 200, it should be understood that thebaler 10 can include multiple baling chambers 18 for simultaneousforming multiple individual rows of bales. For example, the embodimentsshown in the drawings include two baling chambers 18, namely, a leftside baling chamber 18 and a right side baling chamber 18. Each of thebaling chambers 18 may present a bale-forming area in which the bales ofcrop material may be formed. However, it should also be understood thatcertain embodiments of the baler 10 may include a single baling chamber18 that presents multiple bale-forming areas therein. For example, someembodiments of the baler 10 may include a single baling chamber 18 inwhich crop material is fed and separated by a knife to form two bales,with one bale being formed in one of two bale-forming areas definedwithin the single baling chamber 18 (i.e., one bale-forming area oneither side of the knife). The baler 10 may, therefore, simultaneouslyform two individual bales (one bale in each bale-forming area), perhapsthrough use of two plungers 52 in a manner similar to that describedabove. In further embodiments, the single baling chamber 18 may havemore than one knife, such that the single baling chamber 18 may includemore than two bale-forming areas for simultaneously forming more thantwo bales. For example, the single baling chamber 18 may include twoknives for simultaneously forming three bales within three bale-formingareas contained within the single baling chamber 18. In embodiments ofthe baler 10 that includes “n” number of knives within a single balingchamber 18, the baler 10 may simultaneously form “n+1” number of baleswithin “n+1” number of bale-forming areas presented by the single balingchamber 18.

As used herein, the term bale-forming area may refer to a single areabounded by the walls 54, 56, 58 of a single baling chamber 18, such thateach baling chamber 18 of the baler 10 defines a single bale-formingarea. Alternatively, the term bale-forming area may refer to one of aplurality of areas, the plurality of which are bounded by the walls 54,56, 58 of a single baling chamber 18. Correspondingly, embodiments ofthe present invention provide for each baling chamber 18 of the baler 10to include one or more bale-forming areas defined therein. Inembodiments that include a plurality of bale-forming areas within asingle baling chamber 18, each bale-forming area may be bound by one ormore of the walls 54, 56, 58 of the baling chamber 18 and by a knife ofthe baling chamber 18. For example, in embodiments in which twobale-forming areas are included within a single baling chamber 18comprising a single knife, a first/left side bale-forming area may bebound by a left sidewall 54, a top wall 56, a bottom wall 58, and theknife. Similarly, a second/right side bale-forming area may be bound bya right sidewall 54, a top wall 56, a bottom wall 58, and the knife.Once the crop material passes by the knife, the bales being formed inthe first/left and second/right bale-forming areas may be adjacent toand contact each other as the bales continue to pass through the balingchamber 18.

As such, in certain embodiments in which a plurality of bale-formingareas are presented within a single baling chamber 18, the bale-formingareas may not be separated from each other. Instead, the bale-formingareas may be situated adjacent to each other with no space therebetween.However, as noted above, the bale-forming areas may be at least partlyseparated by the knife described above. In contrast, in embodiments inwhich each baling chamber 18 includes a single bale-forming area, thebale-forming areas may be separated from each other (e.g., by a space).In more detail, as described above with respect to the embodiments ofthe baler 10 that include two baling chambers 18, the left side balingchamber 18 may be separated by a space from the right side balingchamber 18. As such, the bale-forming areas within the left and rightside baling chambers 18 may likewise be separated from each other.

Turning now to the singulator 200, as illustrated by FIG. 14 , thesingulator 200 may form part of the baler 10 and may extend rearwardfrom the baling chambers 18 and/or from the bale-forming areas. Forexample, the singulator 200 may be connected to the baling chambers 18and/or to the chassis 12 of the baler 10 in a manner that permits thesingulator 200 to receive the first and second individual bales emittedfrom the baling chambers 18 (and/or emitted from the one or morebale-forming areas). Upon receiving the first and second individualbales, the singulator 200 may manipulate the first and second individualbales into a single row of bales that can be deposited onto the groundfor efficient pickup by stacking machines or can be provided to atow-behind bale accumulator for further sorting or grouping.

Turning to the singulator 200 in more detail, and with reference toFIGS. 14-18 , the singulator 200 may comprises a landing section 202 andan exit section 204. The landing section 202 may be configured toreceive the first and second individual bales from the baling chambers18 (and/or from the bale-forming areas), and the exit section 204 may beconfigured to manipulate the bales into a single row. As such, at leasta portion of the landing section 202 may be broad or wide enough toreceive at least two side-by-side bales from the baling chambers 18(and/or from the bale-forming areas). In contrast, at least a portion ofthe exit section 204 may be narrow enough (or otherwise configured) tonot allow receipt of two side-by-side bales.

In some embodiments, the landing section 202 may be secured to therearward ends of the baling chambers 18 and positioned directly belowthe outlets of the baling chamber 18. For example, as shown in FIGS.14-16 , the landing section 202 may be pivotally secured to a bottomside of the baling chambers 18 and supported in place via chain linksthat extends between the landing section 202 and an upper side of thebaling chambers 18. In other embodiments, the landing section 202 may besecured to the chassis 12 of the baler 10. Nevertheless, in theconfiguration shown in FIGS. 14-16 , the bales emitted from the balingchambers 18 (and/or from the bale-forming areas) can be received ontothe landing section 202 in a side-by-side configuration. The landingsection 202 may be secured to the baling chambers 18 in such a mannerthat the landing section 202 is oriented at angle, declining from frontto back. As a result, the bales received on the landing section 202 canslide rearward on the landing section 202 under the force of gravity tothe exit section 204. The orientation of the landing section 202 may bechanged by extending or retracting the length of the chain links, suchthat the landing section 202 can increase or decrease the declinationfrom the baling chambers 18 (via rotation around the landing section's202 pivotal link to the baling chambers 18).

The exit section 204 may be secured to a rear side of the landingsection 202, such that the singulating section is located behind thelanding section 202. The exit section 204 may be orientated generallyparallel with the landing section 202 such that the exit section 204 maybe oriented at angle of decline as it extends from front to back. Insome embodiments, the exit section 204 may be pivotally connected to arear side of the landing section 202 such that the singulating sectionmay be selectively orientated at a steeper angle than the landingsection 202. Given the declination orientation of the exit section 204,the bales received on the exit section 204 from landing section 202 canslide rearward on the exit section 204 under the force of gravity

As will be discussed in more detail below, embodiments of the singulatordescribed herein may include various transport mechanisms for moving thefirst and second individual bales from the landing section to the exitsection and off the exit section. In addition to the use of gravity asdescribed above (e.g., via gravity slide or a gravity dump), certainembodiments may include a transport mechanism selected from one or moreof the following: a pushing element and a conveyor. For instance, thelanding section 202 may be positioned generally horizontally and mayinclude a conveyor mechanism for moving the bales from the landingsection 202 to the exit section 204. An embodiment of a singulator thatincludes such a conveyor mechanism is described in more detail below.

Once the bales arrive at the exit section 204, the exit section 204 maybe configured to manipulate the bales into a single, linear row ofbales. For example, the singulator 200 may comprise, as illustrated inFIGS. 17 and 18 , an exit section 204 with a pair of pusher members 210positioned on left and right sides of the exit section 204. The pushermembers 210 may be configured as elongated structural members that areconfigured to push bales towards a center of the singulator 200. Inparticular, a longitudinal centerline or longitudinal vertical plane mayextend generally longitudinally (i.e., fore and aft) through the centerof the singulator 200. As such, the center of the singulator 200 willgenerally include the longitudinal centerline or longitudinal verticalplane of the singulator 200.

In more detail, the pusher members 210 may comprise elongated tubularmembers formed from metal or another material with sufficient strengthand durability. The exit section 204 may include one pusher member 210secured on either lateral side of the exit section 204. As perhaps bestshown in FIG. 17 , a forward portion of a first pusher member 210 may besecured to a left side of the exit section 204, while a forward portionof a second pusher member 210 may be secured to a right side of the exitsection 204. As connected to the exit section 204, the forward portionsof the left and right pusher members 210 may be spaced apartsufficiently to present a receiving area that is sufficient to receiveone or more side-by-side bales. The pusher members 210 may extendrearward and inward along a top surface of the exit section 204. Assuch, the distance between the left and right pusher members 210 mayreduce as the pusher members 210 extend rearward, down the exit section204. As a result, the pusher members 210 may cooperatively form a funnelshape. In more detail, the rearward potions of the pusher members 210may be separated only by a distance sufficient to receive a single bale.Such an area (presented between the rearward portions of the pushermembers 210) may be defined as an exit area that is narrow enough to notallow receipt of two individual bales positioned side-by-side.

In such a configuration, as illustrated by FIG. 18 , bales can bereleased by each of the left and right baling chambers 18 (and/or by thefirst/left and second/right bale-forming areas) onto the landing section202. As noted, the landing section 202 may be wide enough to supporttwo, side-by-side bales. The bales can slide (e.g., side-by-side), underthe force of gravity, rearward and down the landing section 202.However, once the bales reach the exit section 204, the pusher members210 will function to singulate the bales into a single row of bales.Specifically, the bales will enter the generally wide receiving areapresented between the forward portions of the pusher members 210. As thebales slide rearward, and down the exit section 204, the funnel shape ofthe pusher members 210 will function to push one of the bales laterallyinward towards a center of the exit section 204 (e.g., which may includethe longitudinal centerline or longitudinal vertical plane of thesingulator 200) as the bales travel down to the exit area presentedbetween the rearward portions of the pusher members 210. As such, one ofthe pusher members 210 (e.g., a left side pusher member) may beconfigured to push a first individual bale (e.g., a bale originatingfrom the left side baling chamber 18) toward the center of the exitsection 204, while the other pusher member 210 (e.g., a right sidepusher member) is configured to push a second individual bale (e.g., abale originating from the right side baling chamber 18) toward thecenter of the exit section 204. Such a pushing of the bales to thecenter of the exit section 204, as illustrated in FIG. 18 , will causethe bales to line up in a single, row, where the bales can be droppedoff the singulator 200 onto the ground (forming a single row of bales)or can be picked up from the singulator 200. In addition to thegenerally stationary pusher members 210, certain embodiments may providefor the pusher members 210 to be actuatable, e.g., via hydrauliccylinders. In such embodiments, the pusher members 210 may beselectively/periodically actuated inward, so as to aid in pushing thebales laterally inward toward the center of the exit section 204

As perhaps best shown in FIG. 17 , the pusher members 210 may, in someembodiments be pivotally secured to the exit section 204. Specifically,forward portions of the pusher members 210 may be pivotally secured tothe exit section 204 via brackets 212. Such a pivotal connection allowsthe pusher members 204 to at least partially flex outwards when a forceis applied to inner portions of the pusher members 204. Such flexing maybe beneficial to prevent jamming of the singulator 200 when processingbales of various sizes or when the singulator 200 encounters obstaclesor debris. For example, FIG. 18 illustrates the pusher members 210flexing outward as a bale passes through the exit area presented betweenthe pusher members 210. After the bale has completely passed through,the pusher members 210 can return to their original positions via theforce of a bias assembly 214, as illustrated in FIG. 15 . The biasassembly 214 may comprise a spring connecting the forward portions ofeach of the pusher members 210 (e.g., via the brackets 212) to theunderside of the exit section 204. As such, the bias assembly 214 canfunction to bias the pusher members 210 in a laterally inward position,so as to return to such position after having been flexed outwards. Inalternative embodiments, the bias assembly 214 may include a singlespring that connects the forward portions of the pusher members 210 soas to bias the pusher members in the laterally inward position.

Finally, it should be noted that in some embodiments, the singulator 200may be folded forward adjacent to the remaining components of the baler10 (e.g., adjacent to the baling chamber 18 and/or the chassis 12) forconvenience during transport of the baler 10. For example, theconnection between the landing section 202 and the baling chambers 18may allow for the landing section 202 to be pivoted upward/downward andadjacent to the baling chambers 18 and/or to the chassis 12. Similarly,the exit section 204 may be pivoted upward/downward and adjacent to thelanding section 202. Such shifting/folding of the landing section 202and the exit section 204 reduces the footprint of the baler 10, whichcan aid in transport and storage of the baler 10.

An additional embodiment of a singulator 220 is illustrated in FIG.19-22 . As with the singulator 200, the singulator 220 may be secured toa rear side of other components of the baler 10, such as to the rear ofthe baling chambers 18 and/or to the chassis 12. In some embodiments, asshown in FIG. 19 , the singulator 220 may include a chassis extension221, which comprises a rigid support assembly on which the othercomponents of the singulator 220 can be supported.

The other components of the singulator 220 may include a landing section222 and an exit section 224. The landing section 222, on which first andsecond individual bales may be deposited by the left and right balingchambers 18 (and/or by the first/left and second/right bale-formingareas), respectively, may comprise a first dump cradle 226 (e.g., a leftside dump cradle) and a second dump cradle 228 (e.g., a right side dumpcradle), each movable between a bale-receiving position and abale-dumping position. FIGS. 19-22 illustrate each of the dump cradles226, 228 in the bale-receiving position. FIG. 23 shows the left sidedump cradle 226 rotated downward in the bale-dumping position, and FIG.24 shows the right side dump cradle 228 rotated downward in thebale-dumping position. In the bale-receiving position, the left sidedump cradle 226 can receive and support an individual bale ejected fromthe left side baling chamber 18 (and/or by the first/left bale-formingarea). Similarly, in the bale-receiving position, the right side dumpcradle 228 can receive and support an individual bale ejected from theright side baling chamber 18 (and/or by the second/right bale-formingareas). In contrast, in the bale-dumping position, the left side dumpcradle 226 is configured to dump an individual bale that was receivedfrom the left side baling chamber 18 down onto the exit section 224.Likewise, in the bale-dumping position, the right side dump cradle 228is configured to dump an individual bale that was received from theright side baling chamber 18 down onto the exit section 224.

The dump cradles 226, 228 may be supported in positions adjacent to therear of the baling chambers 18 via upright supports that extend upwardfrom the chassis extension 221. As such, the landing section 222 (whichincludes the dump cradles 226, 228) may be positioned above the exitsection 224, as will be discussed in more detail below.

Each of the dump cradles 226, 228 may comprise an elongated base panelthat is rotatably connected to one or more of the of the uprightsupports. The base panels may have a length that is generally the samelength as (or longer than) a bale being formed by the baler. The dumpcradles 226, 228 may be actuated between the bale-receiving and thebale-dumping positions (and vice versa) via dump actuators that extendfrom the upright supports to the dump cradles 226, 228. In someembodiments, the dump actuators may comprise hydraulic cylinders. Assuch, the singulator 220 may be associated with a hydraulic system(e.g., a pump, a reservoir, lines, etc.) for selectively providinghydraulic power to the cylinders. In some embodiments, the uprightsupports may each also include an elongated side support panel thatworks in cooperation with a respective dump cradle 226, 228 to support abale. Specifically, when the dump cradles 226, 228 are in thebale-receiving position, the base panels are generally horizontal so asto be able to support a bale (in conjunction with the side supportpanels). In contrast, when the dump cradles 226, 228 are in thebale-dumping position, the base panels are shifted (i.e., rotateddownward) to a non-horizontal or a downwardly oriented position, suchthat the dump cradles 226, 228 will not support a bale and the bale willdrop down onto the exit section 224.

In more detail, when in the bale-receiving position, each of the dumpcradles 226, 228 may be configured to support an individual bale ejectedfrom one of the baling chambers 18. To facilitate the reception of thebales, the dump cradles 226, 228 may be positioned directly rearwardand/or below the baling chambers 18, with the left side dump cradle 226rearward and/or below of the left side baling chamber 18 and the rightside dump cradle 228 positioned rearward and/or below of the right sidebaling chamber 18. As such, when the left side dump cradle 226 is in thebale-receiving position (See, e.g., FIGS. 22 and 24 ), the left sidebaling chamber 18 can emit a bale that is received onto the left sidedump cradle 226. Similarly, when the right side dump cradle 228 is inthe bale-receiving position (See, e.g., FIGS. 22 and 23 ), the left sidebaling chamber 18 can emit a bale that is received onto the left sidedump cradle 228.

Each of the dump cradles 226, 228 may include a sensor 229 fordetermining when a bale has been completely received on a given dumpcradle 226, 228 from the respective baling chamber 18. The sensors 229may comprise electro-mechanical switches positioned on rearward ends ofthe dump cradles 226, 228, as shown in FIG. 22 . In some embodiments,the sensors 229 may comprise non-contact inductive proximity sensorsconfigured to detect a position of a cover panel that is selectivelypositioned over a base element. The cover panel may be biased, via aspring, in an open position in which the cover panel is rotated awayfrom the base element. However, the cover panel may be pushed rearwardto a closed position in which the cover panel is positioned directlyover the base element. The cover panel being in the closed position isindicative of a bale being completely positioned on the respective dumpcradle 226, 228, as describe below.

In operation of the baler 10, a bale being ejected from a bailingchamber 18 will slide rearward on a dump cradle 226, 228. Once the balehas been completely ejected onto a dump cradle 226, 228, the bale willmake contact with the sensor 229 (i.e., shifting the cover panelrearward over the base element), which will provide an indication thatthe bale has been completely received on the dump cradle 226, 228. Insome embodiments, the sensors 229 may be in communication with the dumpactuators that will cause the dump cradle 226, 228 to transition fromthe bale-receiving position to the bale-dumping position when a bale hasbeen completely received on the dump cradle 226, 228. Alternatively, thesensors 229 may be in communication with a control system (not shown)that instructs the dump cradles 226, 228 to transition from thebale-receiving position to the bale-dumping position when a bale hasbeen completely received on the dump cradle 226, 228.

Turning now to the exit section 224 in more detail, as perhaps bestshown in FIG. 25 , the exit section 224 may comprise a concave shapedreceiving tray 230 which is supported on the chassis extension 221. Assuch, the exit section 224 (which includes the receiving tray 230) maybe positioned below the landing section 222 (which includes the dumpcradles 226, 228). In more detail, the receiving tray 230 may comprise agenerally trough-shaped central platform comprising inwardly/downwardlysloping sides that extend down to a central base. The exit section 224may additionally include a conveyor 232, as perhaps best show in FIG. 21. The conveyor may comprise one or more paddles 234 that are propelledalong an upper surface of the receiving tray 230 by a drive system. Thedrive system may be a belt drive, chain drive, gear drive, or othersimilar drive mechanism. The drive system may be driven by rotary powerobtained from the PTO of the tractor, or by other power sources (e.g.,hydraulic or electric power sources) The conveyor 232 may extendlongitudinally along the central base of the receiving tray 230. Asperhaps best illustrated in FIG. 25 , the central base of the receivingtray 230 may be formed with a gap that extends along a longitudinallyalong a center of the receiving tray 230. As such, the drive system ofthe conveyor 232 may be positioned underneath the receiving tray 230 andthe paddles 234 can extend upward through the gap. As such, the paddles234 can be actuated along the upper surface of the receiving tray 230 topush bales rearward on the upper surface of the receiving tray 230, aswill be discussed in more detail below.

In some embodiments, as perhaps best illustrated by FIGS. 25-27 ,movement of the conveyor 232 can be initiated by one or more enlargedbutton switches 236 that extend up through cutouts formed in thereceiving tray 230. As shown in FIGS. 25 and 26 , the singulator 220 mayinclude two switches 236, with one switch 236 positioned on either sideof the gap formed through the receiving tray 230. The switches 236 maybe in communication with the conveyor 232, such that actuation (e.g.,depression) of one or both of the switches 236 instructs the conveyor232 to actuate, such that the paddle 234 is caused to move rearwardalong the upper surface of the receiving tray 230 to push a balerearward. Alternatively, the switches 236 may be in communication withthe previously described control system, which can instruct the conveyor232 to actuate, such that the paddle 234 is caused to move rearwardalong the upper surface of the receiving tray 230 to push a balerearward.

Finally, the exit section 224 may include a funnel outlet 238, asillustrated in FIGS. 19-21 , positioned rearward of the receiving tray230. The funnel outlet 238 may be supported on the chassis extension221. The funnel outlet 238 may comprise a base panel surrounded byfunnel-shaped sidewalls. The separation distance between the sidewallsmay reduce from front to rear, so as to give the sidewalls their funnelshape. As a result of the shape, bales passed to the funnel outlet 238(e.g., via the from the receiving tray 230 as will be discussed below)will be generally centered in alignment with a longitudinal centerlineor a longitudinal vertical plane extending through the singulator 220.As such, bales can be deposited from he funnel outlet 238 (e.g., ontothe ground) in a single row.

In operation, the singulator 220 can receiving first and secondindividual bales from the baling chambers 18 (and/or from the balingareas) and manipulate the individual bales such that the individualbales are configured in a single row of bales. In more detail, as shownin FIG. 28 , the right side dump cradle 228 is configured to receivefirst individual bales from the right side baling chamber 18 (and/orfrom the second/right bale-forming area) when the right side dump cradle228 is in the bale-receiving position. Specifically, as a firstindividual bale is ejected from the right side baling chamber 18 (and/orfrom the second/right bale-forming area), the bale will slide along theright side dump cradle 228 until the bale is completely supported on theright side dump cradle 228. At such time, the bale will make contactwith the sensor 229 associated with the right side dump cradle 228,which will cause the right side dump cradle 228 to shift (e.g., rotatedownward) to the bale-dumping position, as shown in FIG. 29 . Suchshifting will cause the first individual bale to drop down onto thereceiving tray 230. The downwardly sloping sides of the receiving tray230 will direct the bale laterally inward towards the center of thereceiving tray 230, such that the bale will make contact with one ormore of the switches 236, thereby depressing the one or more switches.Actuation of the switches will correspondingly cause activation of theconveyor 232.

FIG. 30 illustrates the first individual bale supported in the center(or center portion) of the receiving tray 230. As show, one of thepaddles 234 of the conveyor 232 is positioned directly forward of thebale (e.g., on the front side of the receiving tray 230). Upon the baledepressing one or more of the switches 236, the conveyor 232 will beactivated, causing the paddle 234 to shift rearward, thus forcing thefirst individual bale rearward along the receiving tray as shown in FIG.31 . The conveyor 232 will be activated for a sufficient time period toallow the paddle 234 to force the bale off the receiving tray and ontothe funnel outlet 238. In particular, the conveyor 232 may be activatedfor a time period sufficient to permit the paddle 234 to be actuatedfrom the front side of the receiving tray 230 to a rear side of thereceiving tray 230. Such actuation may be one-half of a rotation cycleof the conveyor 232. In some embodiments, the conveyor 232 may includetwo paddles 234 on opposite sides of the conveyor 232, such that whenone paddle 234 is on the front side of the receiving tray 230 the otherpaddle 234 is on the rear side of the receiving tray 230. As a result,once a first paddle 234 has been shifted to the rear end of thereceiving tray 230 and has pushed the first individual bale off thereceiving tray 230, the conveyor 232 can be deactivated with a secondpaddle 234 being positioned at the front side of the receiving tray 230ready to receive push a second individual bale reward.

In some embodiments, the first individual bale will be forced out of thefunnel outlet 238 and onto the ground via actuation of the conveyor 232.However, in some other embodiments, the first individual bale may remainon or in the funnel outlet 238 until a subsequent bale forces the firstindividual bale off the funnel outlet under power form the conveyor 232.

The above process for moving the first individual bale rearward throughthe singulator 220, as shown in FIG. 32 , can be repeated with thesecond individual bale that is ejected from the left side baling chamber18 (and/or from the first/left bale-forming area) onto the left sidedump cradle 226. Specifically, the left side dump cradle 226 isconfigured to receive the second individual bales from the left sidebaling chamber 18 (and/or from the first/left bale-forming area) whenthe left side dump cradle 226 is in the bale-receiving position. Uponthe second individual bale being completely supported on the left sidedump cradle 226, the bale will trip the sensor 229, and the left sidedump cradle 226 will dump the bale down onto the receiving tray 230. Thesecond individual bale will be directed laterally inward by the concaveshape of the receiving tray 230, such that the bale will depress one ormore of the switches 226 so as to cause the conveyor 232 to shift thesecond individual bale rearward off the receiving tray 230 and onto thefunnel outlet. In some embodiments, the conveyor 232 will force thesecond individual bale into contact with the first individual bale thatis positioned on the funnel outlet 238, such that the first individualbale will be forced off the baler 10 onto the ground. Regardless, thesingulator 220 described above is configured to manipulate first andsecond individual bales received from separate baling chambers 18(and/or from individual bale-forming areas) into a single row of bales.

In some embodiments, the singulator 220 may be associated with a controlsystem for controlling certain functionality of the singulator 220. Thecontrol system may comprise one or more processing elements and/ormemory elements. The memory elements may store a computer program orapplication, which when executed by the processing elements, functionsto control such certain operations of the singulator 220. In particular,the control system may be functionally coupled with the sensors 229, theswitches 236, the dump cradles 226, 228, and/or the conveyor 232 suchthat the control system may receive information from such components andprovide resulting instructions to such components. As was notedpreviously, the baling chambers 18 (and/or the bale-forming areas) maybe configured to form individual bales simultaneously. However, theindividual bales may be completed within and eject from the balingchambers 18 (and/or the bale-forming areas) at different times. Forinstance, the left side baling chamber 18 (and/or the first/leftbale-forming area) may finish forming a first individual bale and mayeject the individual bale onto the left side dump cradle 226. Thereafter(e.g., 10 seconds later), the right side baling chamber 18 (and/or thesecond/right bale-forming area) may finish forming a second individualbale and may eject the bale onto the right side dump cradle 228.Nevertheless, some operational conditions may allow for the left andright baling chambers 18 (and/or the first/left and second/rightbale-forming areas) to finish forming individual bales at nearly thesame time, such that the left and right baling chambers 18 (and/or thefirst/left and second/right bale-forming areas) will eject theindividual bales onto the dump cradles 226, 228 at nearly the same time.

It may be problematic if multiple bales are dropped by the dump cradles226, 228 at the same time onto the receiving tray 230, as jamming of thesingulator 220 may occur. To address such concerns, the control systemmay be configured control operation of the singulator 220 to ensure thatonly one individual bale is dumped onto the receiving tray 230 at atime. For instance, with the first individual bale being supported onthe left side dump cradle 226 in the bale-receiving position, the firstindividual bale may trip the sensor 229 associated with the left sidedump cradle 226. The sensor may provide an indication (e.g., a signal)to the control system that the first individual bale is completelyreceived on the left side dump cradle 226, and the control system mayinstruct the left side dump cradle 226 to shift to the bale-dumpingposition so as to dump the first individual bale onto the receiving tray230. As the first individual bale is dumped onto the receiving tray 230,the bale will be forced laterally inward toward a center of thereceiving tray 230 due to the inwardly/downwardly sloping sidewalls ofthe receiving tray 230. The first individual bale will, thus, makecontact with one (or both) of the switches 236, which will send anindication (e.g., a signal) to the control system of the centeredpositioning of the bale on the receiving tray 230. As such, the controlsystem will instruct the conveyor 232 to activate such that the paddle234 will push the first individual bale rearward across and off thereceiving tray 230 and onto the funnel outlet 238.

During such activity with respect to the first individual bale, theright dump cradle 228 may be in the bale-receiving position and may besupporting a second individual bale that was ejected from the right sidebaling chamber 18 (and/or the second/right bale-forming area). Thesecond individual bale may be completely positioned on the second dumpcradle 228, such that the bale has tripped the sensor 229 associatedwith the right dump cradle 228. As such, the sensor 229 may provide anindication (e.g., a signal) to the control system that the secondindividual bale is completely received on the right dump cradle 228.However, the control system may be configured to not instruct the rightdump cradle 228 to shift to the bale-dumping position until the firstindividual bale has been completely moved off the receiving tray 230. Inparticular, the control system may be configured to not instruct theright dump cradle 228 to shift to the bale-dumping position until theconveyor 232 has been activated for one-half of a rotation, at whichtime the first individual bale has been pushed rearward off thereceiving tray 230 by a first paddle 234 of the conveyor 232. As such,the receiving tray 230 will be generally empty and a second paddle 234will be positioned at a forward end of the receiving tray 230, such thatthe receiving tray 230 is open to receive the second individual balefrom the right side dump cradle 228, such that the second individualbale can be pushed rearward by the second paddle 234 of the conveyor232. In such a manner, the control system may control operation of thesingulator 220 in a manner that manipulates first and second individualbales into a single line of bales without the singulator 220 becomingjammed.

In some further embodiments, the singulator 220 may be incorporated witha scale or other sensor for measuring a weight of individual bales. Insome embodiments, the scales may be incorporated within the landingsection 222. For instance, each of the dump cradles 226, 228 may includeor be associated with a scale to measure a weight of each bale supportedon the dump cradle 226, 228. Alternatively, the scales may beincorporated within the exit section 224. For instance, the receivingtray 230 be associated with a scale to measure a weight of each balesupported thereon. The scales may be communicatively coupled with thecontrol system to use resulting weight data in furtherance of control ofthe singulator 220. The weight data may also be stored for furtheranalysis by the operator of the baler 10.

A further embodiment of a singulator 240 is illustrated in FIG. 33 . Aswith the singulators 200, 220, the singulator 240 may be secured to arear side of other components of the baler 10, such as to the rear ofthe baling chambers 18 and/or the chassis 12. The singulator 240 mayinclude a landing section 242 and an exit section 244. The landingsection 242, on which first and second individual bales may be depositedby the left and right baling chambers 18 (and/or the first/left andsecond/right bale-forming areas), respectively, may comprise a firstlift cradle 246 (e.g., a left side lift cradle) and a second lift cradle248 (e.g., a right side lift cradle), each movable between abale-receiving position and a bale-ejecting position. FIG. 33illustrates each of the lift cradles 246, 248 in the bale-receivingposition. FIG. 34 shows the left side lift cradle 246 in thebale-ejecting position, and FIG. 35 shows the right side lift cradle 248in the bale-ejecting position. In the bale-ejecting position, the leftside lift cradle 246 can receive an individual bale from the left sidebaling chamber 18 (and/or the first/left bale-forming area). Similarly,in the bale-receiving position, the right side lift cradle 248 canreceive an individual bale from the right side baling chamber 18 (and/orthe second/right bale-forming area). In contrast, in the bale-ejectingposition, the left side lift cradle 246 is configured to lift and ejectan individual bale that was received from the left side baling chamber18 (and/or the first/left bale-forming area). Likewise, in thebale-ejecting position, the right side lift cradle 248 is configured tolift and eject an individual bale that was received from the right sidebaling chamber 18 (and/or the second/right bale-forming areas). As such,the lift cradles 246, 248 are configured to lift the first and secondindividual bales, respectively, when moved between the bale-receivingposition and said bale-ejecting position.

Each of the lift cradles 246, 248 may comprise one or more base supportsand one or more side supports. In some embodiments, the base supportsand side supports may be formed from a single piece of material formedin an “L” shape. The lift cradles 246, 248 may each be associated withan actuator (e.g., a hydraulic cylinder) that functions to rotate andraise its respective lift cradle 246, 248 laterally inward and upwardfrom the bale-receiving position to the bale-ejecting position. The liftcradles 246, 248 may be rotatably connected to the baling chambers 18,the chassis 12, and/or the exit section 244 in a manner that allows thelift cradles 246, 248 to be rotated/raised to the bale-ejectingpositions in which the lift cradles 246, 248 are positioned at leastpartially above the exit section 244.

When the lift cradles 246, 248 are in the bale-receiving position, thebase supports are generally horizontal so as to be able to support abottom portion of the bales, while the side supports are orientedvertically to support a side surface of the bales. In the bale-receivingposition, the lift cradles 246, 248 will be positioned below at leastpart of the exit section 244. In contrast, when the dump cradles 226,228 are rotated/raised to the bale-dumping position, the base supportsand the side supports are shifted (i.e., rotated upward) tonon-horizontal and non-vertical positions, respectively, such that thelift cradles 246, 248 will not support the bales and the bales can bedeposited onto the exit section 244.

The exit section 244 present a central platform comprising a maincentral platform 250 that is configured to receive individual bales. Themain central platform 250 may be sufficiently wide to only receive asingle individual bale. The exit section 244 may further include anoutlet slide 252 that is connected to a rearward end of the main centralplatform 250. The individual bales may be moved from the main centralplatform 250 to the outlet slide 252 via a conveyor or other type ofpushing element. Once on the outlet slide 252, the bales can sliderearward under the force of gravity and off the singulator 240 onto theground. Alternatively, the main central platform 250 may be configuredto be rotated downward (e.g., under power of a hydraulic cylinder) so asto be selectively orientated at a declination angle that matches that ofthe outlet slide 252. As such, when the main central platform 250 isrotated downward, a bale can slide rearward off the main centralplatform 250 under the force of gravity and on to the outlet slide 252,where the bale can continue sliding down and off the singulator 240. Assuch, the singulator 240 is configured to receive first and secondindividual bales from the left and right side baling chambers 18 (and/orthe first/left and second/right bale-forming areas), respectively, andto singulate such bales in a manner that allows the bales to be alignedin a single row.

Certain embodiments of the high capacity baler 10, may be configured toobtain data and information related to the baler 10 and/or the baleforming process and to present such information to an operator of thebaler 10 so that the operator can monitor and control the bale formingprocess. In more detail, the embodiments of the present invention mayinclude a control system 300, as illustrated in FIG. 36 , for obtaininginformation relating to the baler 10 and for presenting such informationto an operator of the baler 10. As illustrated, the control system 300may comprise one or more processing elements 302 and one or more memoryelements 304. The control system 300 may also include, or otherwise beassociated with, various sensors, such as baler sensors 305 and balingchamber sensors 306, 308, which are discussed in more detail below.

The processing element 302 may comprise processors, microprocessors(single-core and multi-core), microcontrollers, DSPs, field-programmablegate arrays (FPGAs), analog and/or digital application-specificintegrated circuits (ASICs), or the like, or combinations thereof. Theprocessing element 302 may generally execute, process, or runinstructions, code, code segments, software, firmware, programs,applications, apps, processes, services, daemons, or the like. Theprocessing element 302 may also include hardware components such asfinite-state machines, sequential and combinational logic, and otherelectronic circuits that can perform the functions necessary for theoperation of the present invention. The processing element 302 may be incommunication with other electronic components through serial orparallel links that include address busses, data busses, control lines,and the like.

The memory element 304 may comprise data storage components, such asread-only memory (ROM), programmable ROM, erasable programmable ROM,random-access memory (RAM) such as static RAM (SRAM) or dynamic RAM(DRAM), cache memory, hard disks, floppy disks, optical disks, flashmemory, thumb drives, universal serial bus (USB) drives, or the like, orcombinations thereof. In some embodiments, the memory element 304 may beembedded in, or packaged in the same package as, the processing element302. The memory element 304 may include, or may constitute, anon-transitory “computer-readable medium”. The memory element 304 maystore the instructions, code, code segments, software, firmware,programs, applications, apps, services, daemons, or the like that areexecuted by the processing element 302. In particular, the memoryelement 304 may store information about particular configurations of thecontrol system 300 and/or of the baler 10. The memory element 304 mayalso be able to store all the information gathered by the varioussensors 305, 306, 308.

In more detail, the control system 300 may also include the varioussensors (e.g., baler sensors 305, first baling chamber sensors 306, andsecond baling chamber sensors 308) for obtaining data and informationrelated to the baler 10 and/or to the baling process. The baler sensors305 may be configured to obtain data and/or various parameters relatedto the operation of the baler 10, while the baling chamber sensors 306,308 may be configured to obtain data and/or various parameters relatedto the baling chambers 18 and/or to the individual bales being formedwithin the baling chambers 18. Such sensors may provide the obtaineddata to the processing elements 302 and/or the memory elements 304 forprocessing and analysis. The resulting processed and/or analyzed datamay comprise parameters that can be interpreted by the operator of thebaler 10. As such, the data and/or the parameters may be provided to anelectronic display 310 in the form of parameters forpresentation/display to the operator of the baler 10.

As was discussed previously, each baling chamber 18 of the baler 10 mayinclude one or more bale-forming areas defined therein. In certainembodiments, such as those described in FIGS. 1-13 , the baler 10 maycomprise two baling chambers 18 with each defining a single bale-formingarea within, such that the baler 10 includes two bale-forming areaspresented by the two baling chambers 18. Nevertheless, other embodimentsmay provide for the baler 10 to include two bale-forming areas presentedwithin a single baling chamber 18. Regardless of whether the baler 10includes two or more bale-forming areas defined by two or more balingchambers 18 or by a single baling chamber 18, embodiments of the presentinvention provide for the use of the various sensors of the controlsystem 300 to obtain data and information associated with the individualbales formed in the bale-forming areas within the baling chambers 18. Inmore detail, the baling chamber sensors 306, 308 may, in someembodiments, each comprise flake length sensors configured to measure aflake length of the individual bales formed within the baling chambers18 and/or the bale-forming areas. As was described previously, cropmaterial can be provided from the stuffer chutes 28 into the balingchambers 18 via cycling of the stuffer assemblies 50. During each cycle,the left side stuffer assembly 50 will introduce a charge of cropmaterial into the left side baling chamber 18, and the right sidestuffer assembly 50 will introduce a charge of crop material into theright side baling chamber 18. The left side plunger 44 will cyclicallycompress the charges of crop material into an individual bale, and theright side plunger 44 will cyclically compress the charges of cropmaterial into an individual bale. It should be understood that eachcycle of a given plunger 44 will compress one of the charges of cropmaterial introduced into the respective baling chamber 18 into a “flake”of the individual bale. Generally, when baling crop material, it ispreferable to have a consistent flake length, with the flake lengthdefined as the thickness of the flakes that form the bale. For example,a standard small square bale may commonly be formed with an overalllength of three feet (i.e., thirty-six inches). If the standard smallsquare bale is formed from fifteen flakes having generally equal flakelengths, then each flake length will be about 2.4 inches.

Embodiments provide for the flake lengths of the individual bales formedin each of the baling chambers 18 to be measured by baling chamberssensors 306, 308, which may comprise various types of flake lengthsensors. For example, in some embodiments, the flake length sensors maycomprise rotation sensors that are positioned on or adjacent to thestarwheels 98 positioned on top of the baling chambers 18. As waspreviously described, the starwheels 98 are configured to contact uppersurfaces of the bales and rotate as the bales are formed and travelthrough the baling chambers 18. Thus, as a charge of crop material iscompressed by a plunger 44 into a flake of a bale, the bale is forcerearward through the baling chamber 18 a distance generally equal to thewidth of the flake (i.e., the flake length). The starwheel 98 inengagement with such bale will rotate as the bale is forced rearward,and the magnitude of such rotation will correspond with the flake lengthof the newly added flake. As such, the flake length sensors associatedwith the starwheels 98 can measure magnitudes of rotation of thestarwheels 98, with such magnitudes corresponding to flake lengths ofthe bales formed in the left and right baling chambers 18. In additionto sensors that can measure rotation of the starwheels 98, the flakelength sensors may alternatively comprise distance sensors (e.g.,optical/laser sensors) positioned within the baling chambers 18 andconfigured to measure individual flake lengths of bales.

In addition to the flake length sensors described above, the balingchamber sensors 306, 308 may comprise other types of sensor configuredto measure various parameters of the bales being formed within thebaling chambers 18. For example, the baling chamber sensors 306, 308 maycomprise flake counting sensors configured to measure the number offlakes included in each bale. Such flake counting sensors may compriseposition switches that close each time the plungers 44 cycle to acompression stroke. As noted previously, each time a plunger 44compresses a charge of crop during the bale forming process, a flake isadded to the bale. The flake counting sensors may also incorporate acounter that is configured to count the number of compression strokes,and thus flakes, that are used to form the bale before the bale is tiedoff by the knotter assembly 90. As a result, the flake counting sensorscan be used to determine the number of flakes included within eachindividual bale formed in the left and right baling chambers 18.

In additional embodiments, the baling chamber sensors 306, 308 maycomprise pressure sensors configured to measure the hydraulic pressurebeing applied to the compression assemblies 60 of the baling chambers18. The baling chamber sensors 306, 308 may also comprise moisturesensors, perhaps positioned within the baling chambers 18, andconfigured to measure the moisture content of the crop material beingformed into bales within the baling chambers 18. The baling chambersensors 306, 308 may also comprise weight sensors (i.e., scales),perhaps positioned within the baling chambers 18, and configured tomeasure the weight of the bales within the baling chambers 18.

In addition to the baling chamber sensors 306, 308, embodiments alsoprovide for the baler 10 to include one or more baler sensors 305associated with the baler 10 and configured to obtain data and/orparameters related to the baler 10 and/or to the baling process. Thebaler sensors 305 may comprise a speed sensor positioned on the baler 10and configured to measure a ground speed of the baler 10. In someembodiments, the speed sensor may be positioned on or otherwiseassociated with the tractor pulling the baler 10. The baler sensors 305may also comprise a global positioning system (GPS) sensor positioned onthe baler 10 and configured to determine a geolocation of the baler 10.In some embodiments, the GPS sensor may be positioned on or otherwiseassociated with the tractor pulling the baler 10.

In some embodiments, the baler sensors 305 may also include rotationsper minute (RPM) sensors for measuring RPMs of the baler's 10 gearbox70. The baler sensors 305 may also include a temperature sensor formeasuring a temperature within the gearbox 70 (e.g., an oil temperaturewithin the gearbox 70). The baler sensors 305 may also include a brakeswitch sensor for determining when the brake switch of the baler's 10flywheel 74 is closed. In embodiments in which the baler 10 includes ahydraulic system, the baler sensors 305 may include oil level sensorsfor determining whether the hydraulic system has low oil. The balersensors 305 may also include oil temperature sensors for measuring theoil temperature of the hydraulic system.

Embodiments provide for the control system 300 to obtain data from eachof the sensors 305, 306, 308. Such data will generally correspond toparameters of the baler 10, of the baling process, and/or of the balesof crop material. In some embodiments, the data from the sensors 305,306, 308 may be analyzed by the processor 302 executing one or morecomputer programs stored on the memory elements 304 to obtain usefulparameters. Regardless, the control system 300 will be configured topresent such data and/or parameters to an operator of the baler 10 viathe electronic display 310. Specifically, the control system 300 may beconfigured to present a graphical user interface (GUI), as illustratedin FIG. 37 , which presents various data and parameters to the operatorof the baler 10. The electronic display 310 may be positioned on or in atractor pulling the baler 10 (e.g., in an operator cab of the tractor),such that the electronic display is within eye view of the operator topermit the operator to easily view the electronic display 310 and theGUI presented thereon as the operator is using the baler 10 to formbales of crop material.

The electronic display 310 may comprise a cathode ray tube, liquidcrystal display, plasma, or touchscreen display that is operable todisplay visual graphics, images, text, etc. In certain embodiments, thecomputer program of the present invention facilitates interaction andcommunication through the GUI, as illustrated on FIG. 37 , which can bepresented on the electronic display 310. The GUI may enable the user tointeract with the electronic display 310 by viewing, as well as bytouching or pointing at display areas to provide information to thecontrol system.

Turning to the GUI in more detail, as illustrated in FIG. 37 , the GUImay have a plurality of display areas that present various types ofinformation or parameters to the operator of the baler 10. As notepreviously, such parameters may be based on the data and informationobtained from the various sensors 305, 306, 308 and/or analyzed by thecontrol system 300. The parameters may, thus, be presented to the uservia the electronic display 310. In some embodiments, the parameters maybe graphically depicted via icons or graphic elements. Alternatively, orin addition, the parameters may be displayed user numerical data values.Beginning with the top left corner of the GUI shown in FIG. 37 , forinstance, a display area 320 may present an icon, graphic element,and/or numerical values illustrative of a real-time travel speed of thebaler 10. In addition, display area 322 may present an icon, graphicelement and/or numerical values illustrative of a rea-time RPM of thegearbox 70 of the baler 10. In addition, display area 324 may present anicon, graphic element, and/or numerical values illustrative of real-timehydraulic pressure of the compression assemblies 60 of the baler 10. Insome embodiments, the operator of the baler 10 may enter a targethydraulic pressure of the compression assemblies 60, and such targethydraulic pressure may also be shown in the display area 324.

The GUI of the electronic display 310 may also include a display area326 that presents one or more notifications (e.g., icons, graphicalelements, etc.) related to real-time operation of the baler 10. Thenotifications may be alerts that indicate when certain parameters of thebaler 10, the baling process, and/or the bales are outside of a desiredrange. For example, an alert may be provided if bale moisture is toohigh or low, if bale weight is too high or low, if the baler 10 speed istoo high or low, if a length of bales being formed in the left sidebaling chamber is too long or short, or if a length of bales beingformed in the left side baling chamber is too long or short. In someembodiments, the desired range (i.e., a target range) of the parametersmay be input by the operator. For instance, the electronic display 310may be a touchscreen, which allows the operator to input a desired rangefor one or more of the parameters directly by touching the electronicdisplay 310. As an example, the operator may input a desired length ofthe bales being formed in the left and right baling chambers 18. If thebaling chambers sensors 306, 308 sense that one or more bales formed inthe left or right baling chambers 18 are longer or shorter than thedesired length, then an alert may be shown on the display area 326. Insome embodiments, such an alert, which is a visible alert, may beaccompanied by an audible alert produced by a speaker associated withthe control system 300.

Moving to a bottom of the GUI, display area 328 may present an icon,graphic element, and/or numerical values illustrative of a length of thelast formed bale within the left-side baling chamber 18. The displayarea 328 may also present an icon, graphic element, and/or numericalvalues illustrative of the number of flakes included within the lastformed bale from the left-side baling chamber 18. The display area 328alternatively present an icon, graphic element, and/or numerical valuesillustrative of the total length and/or the number of flakes includedwithin the bale currently being formed the left-side baling chamber 18.Display area 330 may present an icon, graphic element, and/or numericalvalues illustrative of a length of the last formed bale within theright-side baling chamber 18. The display area 330 may also present anicon, graphic element, and/or numerical values illustrative of thenumber of flakes included within the last formed bale from theright-side baling chamber 18. The display area 330 alternatively presentan icon, graphic element, and/or numerical values illustrative of thetotal length and/or the number of flakes included within the balecurrently being formed the right-side baling chamber 18. Furthermore,display area 332 may present an icon, graphic element, and/or numericalvalues illustrative of the total number of bales formed by baler 10during the current job. Such total number may be determined by one ormore baling chamber sensors 306, 308 configured to determine when aknotter assembly 90 has tied off a bale, therefore being indicative of abale having been completely formed by the baler 10. The total number maybe alternatively determined by one or more baling chamber sensors 306,308 (e.g., counters, switches, etc.) configured to count each bale thatexits the baling chambers 18.

A center portion of the GUI may include a display area 334 thatcomprises a pair of graphical vertical bar indicators. A first verticalbar indicator (e.g., a left vertical bar indicator) may correspond withthe left side baling chamber 18 (and/or the left side bale-formingarea), and a second vertical bar indicator (e.g., a right vertical bar)may correspond with the right side baling chamber 18 (and/or the rightside bale-forming area). In embodiments in which the baler 10 includesmore than two bale-forming areas (e.g., more than two baling chambers18), the display area 334 may have more than two vertical barindicators. Specifically, the number of vertical bar indicators maycorrespond with the number of baling chambers 18 (and/or the number ofbale-forming areas) associated with the baler 10. The vertical barindicators may be referred to as “flake length bars” and may be used toillustrate the real-time flake lengths of the bales being formed in eachof the bale-forming areas (e.g., in the left and right side balingchambers 18). Thus, the flake length bars may also be used to illustratea real-time comparison between the flake lengths of the bales beingformed in each of the bale-forming areas (e.g., in the left and rightside baling chambers 18). Furthermore, the flake length bars may bealternatively used to illustrate real-time total lengths of each thebales being formed in the bale-forming areas (e.g., in the left andright side baling chambers 18).

In more detail, as noted above, certain the baling chamber sensors 306,308 may be configured to measure a flake length of each of the flakesincluded in the bales being formed in the baling chambers 18. Suchbaling chamber sensors 306, 308 may send flake length information to thecontrol system 300, which may display such information on the electronicdisplay 310 via the flake length bars presented on the GUI. In certainembodiments, the operator of the baler may set a target flake length viathe electronic display 310. For example, the operator may intend for theflake lengths of the bales to have a preferred target of “2.4” inches(such that a “36” inch bale will include fifteen flakes, each having agenerally even width). Once the target flake length is entered, the GUIof the electronic display 310 may present an icon, graphic element,and/or numerical values illustrative of the target flake length indisplay area 336. In addition, the flake length bars within the displayarea 334 may have central horizontal marker extending behind or throughthe flake length bars. This central horizontal marker may represent thetarget flake length.

In operation of the baler 10, and in particular of forming bales in theleft and right side baling chambers 18, the interior space of the flakelength bars may be filled (e.g., via solid color or textured patternfills) from bottom up to represent and/or indicate the real-time flakelengths of the bales being formed in the baling chambers 18. As such,when the flake length bars are empty/unfilled, the flake lengths of thebales are zero and no bales are being formed in the baling chambers 18.When the flake length bars are filled halfway, i.e., up to the centralhorizontal marker, then the real-time flake lengths of the bales beingformed in the baling chambers 18 are at the target flake length (e.g.,2.4 inches). When the flake length bars are fully filled, i.e., up totop of the flake length bars, then the real-time flake lengths of thebales being formed in the baling chambers 18 are at twice the targetflake length (e.g., 4.8 inches). If the flake length bars are filled upto a position below the central horizontal marker representing thetarget flake length (e.g., as illustrated in the right side flake lengthbar of FIG. 37 ), then the real-time flake lengths of the bales beingformed in the baling chambers 18 are less than the target flake lengths.Contrastingly, if the flake length bars are filled up to a positionabove the central horizontal marker representing the target flake length(e.g., as illustrated in the left side flake length bar of FIG. 37 ),then the real-time flake lengths of the bales being formed in the balingchambers 18 are greater than the target flake lengths.

As such, the flake length bars provide a visual indication to theoperator of the baler 10 as to the real-time flake lengths of the balesbeing formed in the baling chambers 18. If the real-time flake lengthsare less than the target flake length, then the operator can increasethe speed of the baler to provide more crop material into the balingchambers 18 to thereby increase the flake lengths of the bales beingformed in the baling chambers 18. If the real-time flake lengths aregreater than the target flake length, then the operator can decrease thespeed of the baler to provide less crop material to the baling chambers18 to thereby increase the flake lengths of the bales being formed inthe baling chambers 18. Furthermore, the flake length bars of thedisplay area 334 of the GUI simultaneously illustrate the real-timeflake lengths being formed in both the left side and the right sidebaling chambers 18. As such, if the real-time flake length of the leftside baling chamber 18 is greater than or less than the target flakelength, then the operator can maneuver or configure the baler 10 toprovide less or more crop material, respectively, to the left sidebaling chamber 18 to thereby decrease or increase, respectively, theflake lengths of the bale being formed in the left side baling chamber18. Similarly, if the real-time flake length of the right side balingchamber 18 is greater than or less than the target flake length, thenthe operator can maneuver or configure the baler 10 to provide less ormore crop material, respectively, to the right side baling chamber 18 tothereby decrease or increase, respectively, the flake length of the balebeing formed in the right side baling chamber 18.

Below the display area 334 that includes the pair of vertical graphicalbar indicators, the GUI may include a horizontal graphical bar indicatorin a display area 338. The horizontal graphical bar indicator may bereferred to as a “bale offset bar” and may be used to illustrate anreal-time offset magnitude between bales being formed in the left sidebaling chamber 18 and bales being formed in the right side balingchamber 18. As was described previously, in some embodiments, the baler10 may be configured such that bales are formed and ejected from theleft and right side baling chambers 18 at different times (i.e., thebales are ejected from the baling chambers 18 in a staggered manner).For example, a bale may be completely formed in the left side balingchamber 18 and tied off (via the left side knotter assembly 90)approximately twenty seconds before a corresponding bale is completelyformed in the right side baling chamber 18 and tied off (via the rightside knotter assembly 90). As such, the bale formed in the left sidebaling chamber 18 may be ejected from the baler earlier than (e.g.,approximately tweny seconds earlier than) the bale formed in the rightside baling chamber 18. Nevertheless, in some embodiments, the baler 10may be configured such that the bales are formed and ejected from theleft and right side baling chambers 18 at generally the same time. Inparticular, the bales formed in the left and right side baling chambers18 may be fully formed and tied off (via the knotter assemblies 90) atgenerally the same time, such that the bales are ejected from the balingchambers 18 generally simultaneously.

In more detail, as was discussed previously, certain the baling chambersensors 306, 308 may be associated with the knotter assemblies 90 so asto indicate when the knotter assemblies 90 are activated to tie offbales once the bales have been completely formed within the balingchambers 18. Such baling chamber sensors 306, 308 may send to thecontrol system 300 an indication each time the left side knotterassembly 90 and/or the right side knotter assembly 90 ties off a balebeing formed in the left side baling chamber 18 and the right sidebaling chamber, respectively. The control system 300 may, based on theinformation received from the baling chamber sensors 306, 308, causeinformation indicative of the magnitude of offset between bales formedin the left and right side baling chamber 18 to be displayed on theelectronic display 310 via the bale offset bar. In certain embodiments,the operator of the baler 10 may set a target offset via the electronicdisplay 310. For example, the operator may intend for the bales formedin each of the left side and right side baling chambers 18 to be formedwithin and/or ejected simultaneously, in an aligned manner.Alternatively, the operator may intend for the bales formed in each ofthe left side and right side baling chambers 18 to be formed withinand/or ejected in an offset or staggered manner. The target offset maybe based on time (e.g., the bales formed in the left side baling chamber18 should be completely formed and tied off “20” seconds before thebales are completely formed and tied off in the right side balingchamber 18) or on bale length (e.g., the bales formed in the left sidebaling chamber 18 should be completely formed and tied off when thebales being formed in the right side baling chamber 18 are half waycompleted). Once the target offset is entered by the operator, the GUIof the electronic display 310 may present an icon, graphic element,and/or numerical values illustrative of the target offset in displayarea 340. For example, as shown in the GUI of FIG. 37 , the graphicelement of display area 340 is a graphic depiction of two bales (e.g.,representing bales being formed in the left side baling chamber 18 andthe right side baling chamber 18) illustrated being vertically separatedby the selected target offset. In addition, the horizontal bale offsetbar within the display area 338 may have central vertical markerextending behind or through the bale offset bar. This central verticalbar may represent the target offset.

In operation of the baler 10, and in particular during the forming ofbales in the left and right side baling chambers 18, an indicator icon(e.g., small white rectangle) may travel left and right through the baleoffset bar to indicate the real time offset magnitude between the balesbeing formed in the left side baling chamber 18 and the bales beingformed in the right side baling chamber 18. If the indicator icon ispositioned in the middle of the bale offset bar (e.g., centered on thecentral vertical marker representing the target offset), then the balesbeing formed in the baling chambers 18 are being formed in baler 10 insync with the target offset (i.e., either uniformly or at the selectedoffset). Thus, the electronic display 310 is configured to present areal-time comparison of the flake length of the bales formed in the leftside baling chamber 18 and the flake length of the bales formed in theright side baling chamber 18. Specifically, the electronic display 310,via the bale offset bar shown in display area 338, is configured todisplay a real-time offset distance between which bales formed in theleft side baling chamber 18 is being formed and is completed and balesformed in right side baling chamber 18 is completed.

In more detail, if the target offset has been set by the operator toestablish that the bales formed in the left and right side balingchambers 18 should be formed and ejected simultaneously (in an alignedmanner), then the indicator icon will be centered on the centralvertical marker representing the target offset when the bales currentlybeing formed within the left and right side baling chambers 18 are beingformed simultaneously and at the same rate so as to be tied off by theleft and right side knotter assemblies 90 at the same time (and furthersuch that the bales will be ejected from the left and right side balingchambers 18 generally at the same time). If the indicator icon shifts tothe left of the central vertical marker, such a shifting is anindication that the baler 10 is not forming bales according to thetarget offset. In particular, the leftward shifting of the indicatoricon is indicative of the bale being formed in the left side balingchamber 18 being formed at a slower rate than the bale being formed inthe right side baling chamber 18 (as perhaps determined by the balingchamber sensor 306, 308 measuring the times at which the left and rightside knotter assemblies 90 perform a tying operation on respectivebales). As such, the bale being formed in the right side baling chamber18 will be finished and ejected from the baler 10 faster than the balebeing formed in the left side baling chamber 18. The magnitude of theleftward shifting of the indicator icon is generally proportional to theamount by which the formation of the bale in the left side balingchamber 18 is falling behind the formation of the bale in the right sidebaling chamber 18. The further left the indicator icon shifts, thefurther behind the bale in the left side baling chamber 18 is fallingbehind the formation of the bale in the right side baling chamber 18. Tocorrect such an issue, the operator may maneuver the baler 10 and/orotherwise change the configuration of the baler 10 so as to feed morecrop material into the left side baling chamber (or less material intothe right side baling chamber 18) such that the bales are being formedin and ejected from the left and right side baling chambers 18 aregenerally the same time (i.e., in a uniform manner). Thus, theelectronic display 310 is configured to provide a real-time graphicalcomparison of relative crop feed rates to the left and right side balingchambers 18.

Similarly, if the indicator icon shifts to the right of the centralvertical bar, such shifting is an indication that the baler 10 is notforming bales according to the target offset. Specifically, therightward shifting of the indicator icon is indicative of the bale beingformed in the right side baling chamber 18 being formed at a slower ratethan the bale being formed in the left side baling chamber 18 as perhapsdetermined by the baling chamber sensor 306, 308 measuring the time atwhich the left and right side knotter assemblies 90 perform a tyingoperation on respective bales. As such, the bale being formed in theleft side baling chamber 18 will be finished and ejected from the baler10 before the bale being formed in the right side baling chamber 18. Themagnitude of the rightward shifting of the indicator icon is generallyproportional to the amount by which the formation of the bale in theright side baling chamber 18 is falling behind the formation of the balein the left side baling chamber 18. The further right the indicator iconshifts, the further behind the bale in the right side baling chamber 18is falling behind the formation of the bale in the left side balingchamber 18. To correct such an issue, the operator may maneuver thebaler 10 and/or otherwise change the configuration of the baler 10 so asto feed more crop material into the right side baling chamber 18 (orless material into the left side baling chamber 18) such that the balesare being formed in and ejected from the left and right side balingchambers 18 are generally the same time (i.e., in a uniform manner).

As was noted previously, the target offset may also be set by theoperator to specify that the bales formed in the left and right sidebaling chambers 18 are formed and ejected not at the same time, i.e., inan alternating, staggered fashion. In such a configuration, theindicator icon will be centered on the central vertical marker of thebale offset bar when the bales formed in the left side baling chamber 18are properly offset from the bales formed in the right side balingchamber 18. A leftward shifting of the indicator icon is indicative ofthe bale formed in the left side baling chamber 18 falling behind theappropriate offset with respect to the bale formed in the right sidebaling chamber 18. Specifically, the bales formed in the left sidebaling chamber 18 are being formed at a slower pace than the balesformed in the right side baling chamber 18. Similarly, a rightwardshifting of the indicator icon is indicative of the bale formed in theright side baling chamber 18 falling behind the appropriate offset withrespect to the bale formed in the left side baling chamber 18.Specifically, the bales formed in the right side baling chamber 18 arebeing formed at a slower pace than the bales formed in the right sidebaling chamber 18.

In general, the length of the horizontal bale offset bar may berepresentative of the length of the bales being formed in the balingchambers 18. For instance, if the bales are formed to a length of “36”inches, the central vertical marker will be positioned at a pointindicative of the middle of the bale length (i.e., 18 inches). If theindicator icon shifts to half way between the central vertical markerand the left end of the offset bar, the indicator icon will be at aposition indicative of “9” inches from the left side of the bale; thusindicating the bales formed in the left side baling chamber 18 are beingformed at a pace that is one quarter bale length slower than the balesformed in the right side baling chamber 18. If the indicator icon shiftsfully leftward to the left end of the offset bar, the indicator iconwill be at a position indicative of the left side of the bale; thusindicating the bales formed in the left side baling chamber 18 are beingformed at a pace that is one half bale length slower than the balesformed in the right side baling chamber 18. Similarly, if the indicatoricon shifts to half way between the central vertical marker and theright end of the offset bar, the indicator icon will be at a positionindicative of “9” inches from the right side of the bale; thusindicating the bales formed in the right side baling chamber 18 arebeing formed at a pace that is one quarter bale length slower than thebales formed in the left side baling chamber 18. If the indicator iconshifts fully rightward to the right end of the offset bar, the indicatoricon will be at a position indicative of the right side of the bale;thus indicating the bales formed in the right side baling chamber 18 arebeing formed at a pace that is one half bale length slower than thebales formed in the left side baling chamber 18.

The GUI of the electronic display 310 may also include a display area342 that presents one or more icons, graphic elements, and/or numericalvalues relevant to the real-time status/operation of the singulator 220(or other singulator embodiments of the baler 10). For example, displayarea 342 may include three rectangles, with two side-by-side rectanglespositioned above a third, bottom rectangle. The two side-by-siderectangles may be indicative of whether the landing section 222 (e.g.,the left side and/or the right side dump cradles 226, 228) is empty oris supporting a bale thereon. In particular, each of the dump cradles226, 228 may include a baler sensor 305 configured to determine whetherthe dump cradle 226, 228 is supporting a bale. In some embodiments, theapplicable baler sensors 305 may include the electromechanical switchsensors 229 positioned at the rear ends of the dump cradles 226, 228.Alternatively, the bale sensors 305 may include other types of sensorsconfigured to determine if the dump cradles 226, 228 are supporting abale, such as switches, weight sensors, etc. Regardless, the balesensors 305 may send information to the control system 300 indicative ofwhether the dump cradles 226, 228 are supporting bales. The controlsystem 300 may therefrom, generate a visual indication of whether thedump cradles 226, 228 are supporting bales via the electronic display310, on particularly within the display area 342. Specifically, if theleft side dump cradle 226 is not currently supporting a bale, then leftrectangle of the two side-by-side rectangles may be shown as unfilled,blank, or filled with a white color. Alternatively, if the left sidedump cradle 226 is currently supporting a bale, then left rectangle ofthe two side-by-side rectangles may be shown as solidly filled in with adark color or filled in with a textured pattern. The right rectangle ofthe two side-by-side rectangles may be similarly used (i.e., by beingunfilled or filled) to illustrate whether or not the right side dumpcradle 228 is currently supporting a bale. For example, as illustratedin FIG. 37 , the left rectangle of the two side-by-side rectangles isshown filled-in with a textured pattern, while the right rectangle isshown unfilled. Such a configuration is representative of the left sidedump cradle 226 supporting a bale, and the right side dump cradle 228not supporting a bale.

Beneath each of the rectangles of the two side-by-side rectangles, twoelongated linear icons may be provided. One linear icon may behorizontal, while another linear icon may be angled downward. Suchlinear icons may be used as indications of whether the dump cradles 226,228 are in the bale-receiving position or the bale-dumping position. Insome embodiments, the baler sensors 305 may include sensors associatedwith the hydraulic cylinders that actuate the dump cradles 226, 228.Alternatively, the bale sensors 305 may include other types of sensorsconfigured to determine if the dump cradles 226, 228 are in thebale-receiving positions or the bale-dumping positions. Regardless, thebale sensors 305 may send information to the control system 300indicative of whether the dump cradles 226, 228 are in thebale-receiving position or the bale-dumping position. The control system300 may therefrom, generate a visual indication of whether the dumpcradles 226, 228 are in the bale-receiving position or the bale-dumpingposition on the electronic display 310 via the display area 342.Specifically, if the left side dump cradle 226 is in the bale-receivingposition, the horizontal linear icon below the left rectangle of the twoside-by-side rectangles may be highlighted and the downwardly angledicon may not be highlighted. If the left side dump cradle 226 is in thebale-dumping position, the horizontal linear icon below the leftrectangle of the two side-by-side rectangles may not be highlighted andthe downwardly angled icon may be highlighted. A similar configurationof the linear icons below the right rectangle of the two side-by-siderectangles may be used to illustrate whether the right side dump cradle228 is in the bale-receiving position or the bale-dumping position. Asillustrated in FIG. 37 , the left side dump cradle 226 is illustrated asbeing in the bale-dumping position (i.e., the downwardly angled linearicon is highlighted), while the right side dump cradle is illustrated asbeing in the bale-receiving position (i.e., the horizontal linear iconis highlighted).

The third, bottom rectangle from the display area 342 may be used torepresent whether or not a bale is currently being supported on the exitsection 224 (e.g., on the receiving tray 230). In particular, thereceiving tray 230 may include one or more baler sensors 305 configuredto determine whether the receiving tray 230 is currently supporting abale. In some embodiments, the baler sensors 305 may include the buttonswitches 236 positioned on the receiving tray 230. Alternatively, thebaler sensors 305 may include other types of sensors configured todetermine if the receiving tray 230 is supporting a bale, such asswitches, weight sensors, etc. Regardless, the baler sensors 305 maysend information to the control system 300 indicative of whetherreceiving tray 230 is currently supporting a bale. The control system300 may therefrom, generate a visual indication of whether the receivingtray 230 is supporting a bale via the electronic display 310, andparticularly on the display area 342 of the GUI. Specifically, if thereceiving tray 230 is not currently supporting a bale, then the third,bottom rectangle may be shown as unfilled, blank, or filled with a whitecolor. Alternatively, if the receiving tray 230 is currently supportinga bale, then third, bottom rectangle is shown as solidly filled-in witha solid color or filled in with textured pattern. For instance, thethird, bottom rectangle shown in display area 342 of the GUI of FIG. 37is illustrated with a pattern fill, indicative of the receiving tray 230supporting a bale thereon.

Below the three rectangles that indicate whether or not bales are beingsupported by the dump cradles 226, 228 and/or the receiving tray 230,the display area 342 may include one or more icons indicative ofoperation of the conveyor 232 associated with the receiving tray 230. Inparticular, the baler 10 may include one or more baler sensors 305 thatare configured to sense whether the conveyor 232 is activated and/or tosense the operating power/speed of the conveyor 232. Such a balersensors 305 may be associated with a motor that drives the conveyor 232;although, other sensors capable of determining the activation and/orpower/speed of the conveyor 232 may be used. Such sensor 305 may provideinformation to the control system 300, which in turn generates a visualindication of the real-time operation of the conveyor 232 via the GUI onthe display screen 310. For example, an arrow icon may be positionedadjacent to an icon representing the conveyor 232. The arrow icon may bepresented for display on the GUI whenever the conveyor 232 is activatedor running (i.e., so as to push a bale rearward along the receiving tray230). The display area 342 may also include numerical or graphicalindicators indicative of the power or speed at which the conveyor 232 iscurrently operating. For example, as shown in the GUI of FIG. 37 , theconveyor 323 is currently activated (as indicated by the presence of thearrow icon adjacent to the conveyor icon). In addition, the conveyor 232is currently operating at half power/speed, as indicated by the “50%”numerical value provided beside the conveyor icon.

In some embodiments of the baler 10 that include an accumulator systemand/or a bundler system for accumulating/bundling individual balesformed by the baler 10 and pushed out from each of the left and rightside baling chambers 18, the electronic display 310 may presentinformation indicative of the real-time status of such accumulatorsystem and/or a bundler system. For example, similar to how the displayarea 342 illustrates where bales are positioned with respect to thesingulator 220, the GUI presented on the electronic display 310 maypresent icons, graphic elements, and/or other information illustrativeof where bales are positioned with respect to the accumulator systemand/or a bundler system.

The right side of the GUI of the electronic display 310, as illustratedin FIG. 37 may include a plurality of soft key icons. These soft keyicons may be used in embodiments in which the electronic display 310 isa touchscreen. Alternatively, a user control device (e.g., mouse orkeyboard) may be used for the operator of the baler 10 to interact withthe soft key icons. Begging at the top of the soft key icons, soft keyicon 344 includes an image or graphic depiction of a house indicatingthat the currently displayed GUI on the display screen 310 is a homescreen. If other GUI screens are available, the soft key icon 344 mayindicate whether or not such other GUI screens are currently beingdisplayed.

Soft key icon 346 includes an image or graphic depiction of a questionmark and may be selected to display a help screen that providesinformation to an operator of the baler 10 as to how to properlyinteract with the baler 10, the control system 300, and/or the displayscreen 310. Soft key icons 348 include images or graphic depictionsindicative of a hydraulic pressure increases and decrease. A user maydepress one of the soft key icons 348 to selectively increase ordecrease the hydraulic tension pressure and/or a target hydraulictension pressure within the compression assemblies 60. Soft key icons350 include an image or graphic depiction of one or more bales, and maybe selected to display a bale counter screen, which may provide baleprocessing information (e.g., the number of bales formed during currentoperating period). Soft key icon 352 includes an image or graphicdepiction of an exclamation point within a triangle, and may be selectedto display an alarm screen that provides current alarm or alertinformation to an operator of the baler 10. Soft key icon 354 includesan image or graphic depiction of a wrench, and may be selected todisplay a diagnostic screen that provides current, real-time diagnosticinformation to an operator of the baler 10. Soft key icon 354 includesan image or graphic depiction of a gear/sprocket, and may be selected todisplay a settings screen that provides current, real-time settingsinformation to an operator of the baler 10.

Having thus described one or more embodiments of the invention, what isclaimed as new and desired to be protected by Letters Patent includesthe following:

What is claimed is:
 1. A baling system comprising: a high capacity baler; and an electronic display configured to display baling information to an operator of said baler, wherein said baler comprises a first baling chamber in which a first series of first individual bales can be formed, a second baling chamber in which a second series of second individual bales can be formed, wherein said first and second baling chambers are positioned side by side, a first sensor configured to sense one or more parameters related to the first bales, wherein said first sensor comprises a flake length sensor configured to measure a real-time flake length of the first bales being formed in said first baling chamber, one or more second sensors configured to sense one or more parameters related to at least one of said second bales, wherein said second sensor comprises a flake length sensor configured to measure a real-time flake length of the second bales being formed in said second baling chamber, wherein said electronic display is configured to simultaneously display the real-time flake lengths of both the first bales and the second bales measured by said first sensor and said second sensor.
 2. The baling system of claim 1, wherein said first baling chamber is spaced apart from said second baling chamber.
 3. The baling system of claim 1, wherein said baler is configured to be pulled by a tractor, wherein said electronic display is configured to be positioned on or in the tractor.
 4. The baling system of claim 1, wherein said baler includes knotter assemblies for tying securement lines around said first and second bales, wherein said flake length sensors are configured to measure rotation of starwheels associate with said knotter assemblies.
 5. The baling system of claim 1, wherein said electronic display is configured to display an offset distance between which a first bale formed in said first baling chamber is completed and a second bale formed in said second baling chamber is completed.
 6. The baling system of claim 1, wherein said electronic display is configured to provide a real-time graphical comparison of flake lengths of said first and second bales.
 7. The baling system of claim 1, wherein said electronic display is configured to provide a real-time graphical comparison of said one or more parameters of said first and second bales.
 8. The baling system of claim 7, wherein said graphical comparison includes a side-by-side graphical display of bars illustrating a magnitude of said one or more parameters.
 9. The baling system of claim 1, wherein said electronic display is configured to receive operator input.
 10. The baling system of claim 9, wherein said operator input comprises one or more of the following: target flake length and target bale offset.
 11. The baling system of claim 1, wherein said electronic display is configured to provide a real-time comparison of relative crop feed rates to said first and second baling chambers.
 12. The baling system of claim 11, wherein said real-time comparison is a graphical comparison.
 13. The baling system of claim 11, wherein said real-time comparison is a comparison of flake lengths of the first bales and flake lengths of the second bales.
 14. A method of forming a plurality of bales of crop material with a high capacity square baler, said method comprising the steps of: (a) forming a first series of first bales in a first baling chamber; (b) forming a second series of second bales in a second baling chamber, wherein the first and second baling chambers are positioned side by side; (c) obtaining, via flake length sensors, real-time flake lengths of each of the first and the second bales being formed within the first and the second baling chambers, respectively; and (d) presenting, via an electronic display, the real-time flake lengths of both the first and the second bales based on the data obtained via the flake length sensors.
 15. The method of claim 14, wherein electronic display is configured to present a real-time comparison of the flake length of the first bale and the flake length of the second bale. 